# Oration IV Against the Arians - Author: [Athanasius of Alexandria](https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/authors/athanasius/) - Latin title: *Oratio IV contra Arianos* - Date: 4th century (disputed) (disputed) - Source: William Bright, ed., The Orations of St. Athanasius against the Arians (Oxford: Clarendon, 1884) (Greek text: William Bright, The Orations of St. Athanasius against the Arians (Oxford: Clarendon, 1884), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0) - Translation: Claude, from the original text, unless a passage says otherwise; each passage below gives the translator - Work page: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/ - Passages: 36 ## Oration IV Against the Arians 1 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-1 - Source: Bright, 222–223 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that there is one origin of the Godhead, from which the Word is by nature Son, a Word with real substance and not a mere sound. ### Greek text 1. ἘΚ Θεοῦ Θεός ἐστιν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ‘Θεὸςʼ γὰρ ‘ἦν ὁ Λόγος·᾿ καὶ πάλιν, ‘ὧν οἱ πατέρες, καὶ ἐξ ὧν ὁ Χριστὸς, ὁ ὢν ἐπὶ πάντων Θεὸς εὐλογητὸς εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν. ʼ Καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐκ Θεοῦ Θεός ἐστι, καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος, Σοφία, Υἱὸς, καὶ δύναμίς ἐστιν ὁ Χριστὸς, διὰ τοῦτο εἷς Θεὸς ἐν ταῖς θείαις γραφαῖς καταγγέλλεται. Τοῦ ἑνὸς γὰρ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς ὢν ὁ Λόγος, εἰς αὐτὸν, οὗ καὶ ἔστιν, ἀναφέρεται· ὥστε δύο μὲν εἶναι Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν, μονάδα δὲ θεότητος ἀδιαίρετον καὶ ἄσχιστον. Λεχθείη δʼ ἂν καὶ οὕτω ‘μία ἀρχὴʼ θεότητος, καὶ οὐ δύο ἀρχαί· ὅθεν κυρίως καὶ ‘μοναρχίαʼ ἐστίν. Ἐξ αὐτῆς δὲ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐστι φύσει Υἱὸς ὁ Λόγος, οὐχ ὡς ἀρχὴ ἑτέρα καθʼ ἑαυτὸν ὑφεστὼς, οὐδʼ ἔξωθεν ταύτης γεγονὼς, ἵνα μὴ τῇ ἑτερότητι δυαρχία καὶ πολυαρχία γένηται, ἀλλὰ τῆς μιᾶς ἀρχῆς ἴδιος Υἱὸς, ἰδία Σοφία, ἴδιος Λόγος, ἐξ αὐτῆς ὑπάρχων. Κατὰ γὰρ τὸν Ἰωάννην, ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ ‘ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεόν.᾿ Θεὸς γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ἀρχή· καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐξ αὐτῆς ἐστι, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ‘Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος.᾿ Ὥσπερ δὲ μία ἀρχὴ καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο εἶς Θεὸς, οὕτως ἡ τῷ ὄντι καὶ ἀληθῶς καὶ ὄντως οὖσα οὐσία καὶ ὑπόστασις μία ἐστὶν ἡ λέγουσα, ‘ Ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὢν, ʼ καὶ οὐ δύο, ἵνα μὴ δύο ἀρχαί· ἐκ δὲ τῆς μιᾶς, φύσει καὶ ἀληθῶς Υἱὸς, ὁ Λόγος, ἡ Σοφία, ἡ δύναμις ἰδία ὑπάρχουσα αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐξ αὐτῆς ἀχώριστος. Ὥσπερ δὲ οὐκ ἄλλη, ἵνα μὴ δύο ἀρχαὶ, οὕτως ὁ ἐκ τῆς μιᾶς Λόγος οὐ διαλελυμένος, ἢ ἁπλῶς φωνὴ σημαντικὴ, ἀλλὰ οὐσιώδης Λόγος καὶ οὐσιώδης σοφία, ἥτις ἐστὶν ὁ Υἱὸς ἀληθῶς. Εἰ γὰρ δὴ μὴ οὐσιώδης εἴη, ἔσται ὁ Θεὸς ‘λαλῶν εἰς ἀέρα.᾿ καὶ σῶμα οὐδὲν πλέον ἔχων τῶν ἀνθρώπων. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν ἄνθρωπος, οὐκ ἂν εἴη οὐδὲ ὁ Λόγος αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀσθένειαν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ μία οὐσία ἡ ἀρχὴ, οὕτως εἷς οὐσιώδης καὶ ὑφεστὼς ὁ ταύτης Λόγος καὶ ἡ Σοφία. Ὡς γὰρ ἐκ Θεοῦ Θεός ἐστι, καὶ ἐκ σοφοῦ Σοφία, καὶ ἐκ λογικοῦ Λόγος, καὶ ἐκ Πατρὸς Υἱός· οὕτως ἐξ ὑποστάσεως ὑπόστατος, καὶ ἐξ οὐσίας οὐσιώδης καὶ ἐνούσιος, καὶ ἐξ ὄντος ὤν. ### English translation (Claude) 1. The Word is God from God; for “the Word was God,” and again, “of whom are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.” And since Christ is God from God, and the Word, Wisdom, Son, and Power of God, for this reason one God is proclaimed in the divine Scriptures. For the Word, being Son of the one God, is referred back to him whose he is; so that Father and Son are two, but the unity of the Godhead is undivided and unsplit. So too one could speak of “one origin” of the Godhead and not two origins; hence there is, properly speaking, a “monarchy.” And from this very origin the Word is by nature Son, not subsisting by himself as another origin, nor having come to be outside it, lest by this otherness there should be a rule of two or of many; but he is the own Son, own Wisdom, own Word of the one origin, existing from it. For according to John, in this “beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.” For the origin is God; and since he is from it, therefore “the Word was God” as well. And as there is one origin, and in this sense one God, so the substance and hypostasis that really, truly, and actually is, which says, “I am he who is,” is one and not two, so that there may not be two origins; and from the one, by nature and truly, is the Son, the Word, the Wisdom, the Power, which is its own and inseparable from it. And just as there is not another substance, lest there be two origins, so the Word from the one is not something dissolving or a mere significant sound, but a Word with substance and a Wisdom with substance, which is truly the Son. For if he were not a Word with substance, God would be “speaking into the air,” and would have a body no different from men. But since he is not a man, his Word could not be according to the weakness of men either. For as the origin is one substance, so its Word and Wisdom is one, with substance and subsisting. For as he is God from God, Wisdom from the wise, Word from the rational, and Son from the Father, so he is subsistent from a hypostasis, substantial and existing in substance from a substance, and being from being. ### Scripture references - John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - Rom 9:5: quotation, high confidence - Exod 3:14: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 14:9: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - This work, transmitted as Athanasius's fourth Oration against the Arians, is generally held not to be by him; it is a series of short arguments against the Arians and against Marcellus of Ancyra and his followers (mid-4th century). “Origin” renders ἀρχή, which also means “beginning” (as in John 1:1) and “rule”; the author plays on all three senses. “Hypostasis” (ὑπόστασις) is used here as nearly equivalent to “substance” (οὐσία). “A Word with substance” renders οὐσιώδης Λόγος (a Word that really subsists, not a spoken word). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 1 (Bright, 222–223; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-1). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 2 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-2 - Source: Bright, 223–224 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that the Son is neither a quality in God nor a mere name, but a real offspring from the Father, two with him yet one. ### Greek text 2. Ἐπεὶ εἰ μὴ οὐσιώδης Σοφία, καὶ ἐνούσιος Λόγος, καὶ ὢν Υἱὸς, ἀλλὰ ἀπλῶς σοφία, καὶ λόγος, καὶ υἱὸς ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, εἴη ἂν αὐτὸς ὁ Πατὴρ σύνθετος ἐκ σοφίας καὶ λόγου. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, ἀκολουθήσει τὰ προειρημένα ἄτοπα· ἔσται δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ Πατὴρ, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν γεννῶν, καὶ γεννώμενος ὑφʼ ἑαυτοῦ· ἢ ὄνομα μόνον ἐστὶ Λόγος, καὶ Σοφία, καὶ Υἱὸς, οὐχ ὑφέστηκε δὲ, καθʼ οὖ λέγεται ταῦτα, μᾶλλον δὲ ὅς ἐστι ταῦτα. Εἰ οὖν οὐχ ὑφέστηκεν, ἀργὰ ἂν εἴη καὶ κενὰ τὰ ὀνόματα, ἐκτὸς εἰ μὴ ἄν τις εἴποι αὐτοσοφίαν εἶναι καὶ αὐτολόγον τὸν Θεόν. Ἀλλʼ εἰ τοῦτο, εἴη ἂν αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ Πατὴρ καὶ Υἱός· Πατὴρ μὲν, ὅτε σοφὸς, Υἱὸς δὲ, ὅτε Σοφία. Ἀλλὰ μὴ ὡς ποιότης τις ταῦτα ἐν τῷ Θεῷ· ἄπαγε· ἀπρεπὲς τοῦτο εὑρεθήσεται γὰρ σύνθετος ὁ Θεὸς ἐξ οὐσίας καὶ ποιότητος· πᾶσα γὰρ ποιότης ἐν οὐσίᾳ ἐστί. Κατὰ τοῦτο δὲ ἡ θεία μονὰς, ἀδιαίρετος οὖσα, σύνθετος φανήσεται, τεμνομένη εἰς οὐσίαν καὶ συμβεβηκός. Πευστέον οὖν τῶν προπετῶν· ‘Ὁ Υἱὸς Σοφία καὶ Λόγος ἐκηρύχθη τοῦ Θεοῦ· πῶς τοίνυν ἐστίν; εἰ μὲν ὡς ποιότης, ἐδείχθη τὸ ἄτοπον· εἰ δὲ αὐτοσοφία ὁ Θεὸς, καὶ τὸ ἐκ τούτου ἄτοπον εἴρηται παρὰ Σαβελλίῳ. ʼ Οὐκοῦν ὡς γέννημα κυρίως ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Πατρὸς, κατὰ τὸ τοῦ φωτὸς παράδειγμα. Ὡς γὰρ ἀπὸ πυρὸς φῶς, οὕτως ἐκ Θεοῦ Λόγος, καὶ Σοφία ἐκ σοφοῦ, καὶ ἐκ Πατρὸς Υἱός. Ταύτῃ γὰρ καὶ ἡ μονὰς ἀδιαίρετος καὶ ὁλόκληρος μένει, καὶ ὁ ταύτης Υἱὸς Λόγος οὐκ ἀνούσιος, οὐδὲ οὐχ ὑφεστὼς, ἀλλʼ οὐσιώδης ἀληθῶς. Ἐπεὶ εἰ μὴ τοῦτον ἔχει τὸν τρόπον, εἴη ἂν πάντα, ἃ λέγεται, κατʼ ἐπίνοιαν καὶ ἁπλῶς λεγόμενα. Εἰ δὲ φευκτέον τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἐπινοίας ἄτοπον, ἄρα ἀληθὴς Λόγος οὐσιώδης ἐστίν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἀληθῶς Πατὴρ, οὕτως ἀληθῶς Σοφία. Κατὰ τοῦτο οὖν δύο μὲν, ὅτι μὴ κατὰ Σαβέλλιον ὁ αὐτὸς Πατὴρ καὶ Υἱὸς, ἀλλὰ ὁ Πατὴρ Πατὴρ, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς Υἱός· ἓν δὲ, ὅτι Υἱὸς τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ Πατρός ἐστι φύσει, ἴδιος ὑπάρχων Λόγος αὐτοῦ. Τοῦτο ὁ Κύριος ἔλεγεν, ‘Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν·’ Οὔτε γὰρ ὁ Λόγος κεχώρισται τοῦ Πατρὸς, οὔτε ὁ Πατὴρ ἄλογος πώποτε ἦν ἢ ἐστι. Καὶ ὁ Λόγος οὖν Θεὸς, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ οὐκ ἄλογος· διὰ τοῦτο, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοὶ, εἴρηκε. ### English translation (Claude) 2. For if he were not a Wisdom with substance, a Word existing in substance, and a Son who is, but simply wisdom, word, and son in the Father, the Father himself would be composed of wisdom and word. And if so, the absurdities mentioned before will follow: he will be his own Father, and the Son will beget himself and be begotten by himself; or else Word, Wisdom, and Son are only a name, and the one of whom these things are said, or rather who is these things, does not subsist. And if he does not subsist, the names would be idle and empty, unless one were to say that God is wisdom-itself and word-itself. But if so, he would be his own Father and Son: Father when wise, Son when Wisdom. But these things are not in God as some quality; away with the thought, it is unfitting. For God will be found to be composed of substance and quality, since every quality is in a substance. On this view the divine unity, which is undivided, will appear composite, cut into substance and accident. So we must ask these reckless men: “The Son was proclaimed as God's Wisdom and Word; how, then, is he so? If as a quality, the absurdity has been shown; if God is wisdom-itself, the absurdity that follows from this has been stated in the case of Sabellius.” So he is an offspring, in the proper sense, from the Father himself, according to the example of light. For as light is from fire, so the Word is from God, Wisdom from the wise, and Son from the Father. For in this way the unity remains undivided and whole, and its Son, the Word, is not without substance nor non-subsistent, but truly substantial. For if it is not so, everything that is said would be said in thought only and merely in words. But if the absurdity that follows from “in thought only” must be avoided, then the true Word is substantial. For as there is truly a Father, so truly there is Wisdom. In this sense, then, they are two, since the Father and the Son are not the same, as Sabellius says, but the Father is Father and the Son is Son; but one, since the Son is by nature of the substance of the Father, being his own Word. This is what the Lord said: “I and the Father are one.” For neither is the Word separated from the Father, nor was or is the Father ever without Word. So the Word is God, and the Father is not without Word; therefore he said, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me.” ### Scripture references - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Sabellius (early 3rd century) was held to teach that Father and Son are one person under two names. The author opposes both that view and the Arian view. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 2 (Bright, 223–224; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-2). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 3 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-3 - Source: Bright, 224 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that the Word must be from God himself, and so is distinct from the Father yet one with him, and warns against making the Word merely attached to God. ### Greek text 3. Καὶ πάλιν ὁ Χριστὸς Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστι. Πότερον οὖν ἀφʼ ἑαυτοῦ ὑπέστη, καὶ ὑποστὰς προσκεκόλληται τῷ Πατρί; ἢ ὁ Θεὸς αὐτὸν πεποίηκε καὶ ὠνόμασεν ἑαυτοῦ ‘Λόγονʼ; Εἰ μὲν οὖν τὸ πρῶτον, λέγω δὴ τὸ ‘ἑαυτῷ ὑπέστη καὶ Θεός ἐστι, ᾿ δύο ἂν εἶεν ἀρχαὶ, οὐκ ἔσται δὲ εἰκότως οὐδὲ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἴδιος, διὰ τὸ μὴ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Πατρὸς, ἀλλʼ ἑαυτοῦ εἶναι· εἰ δὲ ἔξωθεν πεποίηται, εἴη ἂν κτίσμα. Λείπεται δὴ ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ λέγειν αὐτόν· εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, ἄλλο ἂν εἴη τὸ ἔκ τινος, καὶ ἄλλο τὸ ἐξ οὗ ἐστι· κατὰ τοῦτο ἄρα δύο. Εἰ δὲ μὴ δύο εἴη, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ λέγοιτο, ἔσται τὸ αὐτὸ αἴτιον καὶ αἰτιατὸν, καὶ γεννώμενον καὶ γεννῶν, ὅπερ ἄτοπον ἐπὶ Σαβελλίου δέδεικται. Εἰ δὲ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μὲν ἔστιν, οὐκ ἄλλο δὲ, ἔσται καὶ γεννῶν, καὶ μὴ γεννῶν· γεννῶν μὲν, ὅτι ἐξ αὐτοῦ προφέρει, μὴ γεννῶν δὲ, ὅτι μὴ ἄλλο αὐτοῦ ἐστιν. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, εἴη ἂν κατʼ ἐπίνοιαν λεγόμενος ὁ αὐτὸς ‘Πατὴρʼ καὶ ‘Υἱός.’ Εἰ δὲ ἀπρεπὲς οὕτως, εἴη ἂν δύο, Πατὴρ καὶ Υἱός· ἓν δὲ, ὅτι ὁ Υἱὸς οὐκ ἔξωθεν, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγέννηται. Εἰ δὲ φεύγει τις τὸ λέγειν ‘γέννημα, ʼ μόνον δὲ λέγει ὑπάρχειν τὸν Λόγον σὺν τῷ Θεῷ, φοβηθήτω ὁ τοιοῦτος μὴ φεύγων τὸ ὑπὸ τῆς γραφῆς λεγόμενον, ἐμπέσῃ εἰς ἀτοπίαν, διφυῆ τινα εἰσάγων τὸν Θεόν· μὴ διδοὺς γὰρ ἐκ τῆς μονάδος εἶναι τὸν Λόγον, ἀλλʼ ἁπλῶς κεκολλῆσθαι τῷ Πατρὶ Λόγον, δυάδα οὐσίας εἰσάγει, μηδετέραν τῆς ἑτέρας Πατέρα τυγχάνουσαν. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὲ καὶ περὶ δυνάμεως. Φανερώτερον δʼ ἄν τις ἴδοι τοῦτο, εἰ ἐπὶ Πατρὸς λάβοι· εἰς γὰρ Πατὴρ, καὶ οὐ δύο, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τοῦ ἑνὸς ὁ Υἱός. Ὥσπερ οὖν οὐ δύο Πατέρες, ἀλλʼ εἶς, οὕτως οὐ δύο ἀρχαὶ, ἀλλὰ μία, καὶ ἐκ τῆς μιᾶς οὐσιώδης ὁ Υἱός. Πρὸς Ἀρειανοὺς δὲ ἀνάπαλιν ἐρωτητέον· τοὺς μὲν γὰρ Σαβελλίζοντας ἀπὸ τῆς περὶ υἱοῦ ἐννοίας ἐλεγκτέον, τοὺς δὲ Ἀρειανοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς περὶ πατρός. ### English translation (Claude) 3. And again, Christ is the Word of God. Did he, then, subsist of himself and, having subsisted, attach himself to the Father? Or did God make him and name him his own “Word”? If the first, I mean “he subsisted by himself and is God,” there would be two origins; and he would naturally not be the Father's own either, since he would belong not to the Father himself but to himself. But if he was made from outside, he would be a creature. It remains, then, to say that he is from God himself. And if so, what is from someone is one thing, and that from which it is another; in this sense, then, they are two. But if they are not two, but the names are said of the same, then the same will be cause and caused, begotten and begetting, which has been shown to be absurd in the case of Sabellius. And if he is from him but is not another, he will be both begetting and not begetting: begetting because he brings him forth from himself, not begetting because he is not other than himself. And if so, the same would be called “Father” and “Son” in thought only. But if this is unfitting, they would be two, Father and Son; and one, because the Son has been begotten not from outside but from God. And if anyone shrinks from saying “offspring,” and says only that the Word exists with God, let him fear lest, shrinking from what Scripture says, he fall into absurdity, introducing a God of two natures. For by not granting that the Word is from the unity, but saying simply that a Word is attached to the Father, he introduces a pair of substances, neither of which is Father of the other. The same holds of Power. One may see this more clearly if one considers it in the case of the Father. For there is one Father, not two, and from the one is the Son. As, then, there are not two Fathers but one, so there are not two origins but one, and from the one is the Son, with substance. But the Arians must be questioned the other way round; for those who Sabellianize must be refuted from the notion of the Son, and the Arians from the notion of the Father. ### Translation notes - “Those who Sabellianize” probably include Marcellus of Ancyra and his followers, who spoke of the Word as existing with God rather than as begotten Son. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 3 (Bright, 224; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-3). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 4 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-4 - Source: Bright, 225–226 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues against the Arians that God's own Word and Wisdom cannot be something other than Christ, who is the only-begotten Son through whom God works. ### Greek text 4. Λεκτέον οὖν· Ὁ Θεὸς σοφὸς καὶ οὐκ ἄλογός ἐστιν, ἢ τοὐναντίον ἄσοφος καὶ ἄλογος; Εἰ μὲν οὖν τὸ δεύτερον, αὐτόθεν ἔχει τὴν ἀτοπίαν· εἰ δὲ τὸ πρῶτον, ἐρωτητέον, πῶς ἐστι σοφὸς, καὶ οὐκ ἄλογος· πότερον ἔξωθεν ἐσχηκὼς τὸν Λόγον καὶ τὴν σοφίαν, ἢ ἐξ ἑαυτοῦ; Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἔξωθεν, ἔσται τις ὁ προδεδωκὼς αὐτῷ, καὶ πρὶν λαβεῖν ἄσοφος καὶ ἄλογος· εἰ δὲ ἐξ αὐτοῦ, δῆλον ὅτι οὐκ ‘ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων, οὐδʼ ‘ἦν ποτε ὅτε οὐκ ἦν·᾿ ἀεὶ γὰρ ἦν· ἐπεὶ καὶ οὗ ἐστιν εἰκὼν, ἀεὶ ὑπάρχει. Ἐὰν δὲ λέγωσιν ὅτι ‘σοφὸς μὲν ἔστι καὶ οὐκ ἄλογος, ἰδίαν δὲ ἔχει ἐν ἑαυτῷ σοφίαν καὶ ἴδιον Λόγον, οὐ τὸν Χριστὸν δὲ, ἀλλʼ ἐν ᾦ καὶ τὸν Χριστὸν ἐποίησεʼ λεκτέον, ὅτι, εἰ ὁ Χριστὸς ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ Λόγῳ γέγονε, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ τὰ πάντα· καὶ αὐτὸς ἃν εἴη περὶ οὗ λέγει Ἰωάννης, ‘πάντα διʼ αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο καὶ ὁ ψαλμῳδὸς δὲ, ‘πάντα ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐποίησας.᾿ Εὑρεθήσεται δὲ ὁ Χριστὸς ψευδόμενος, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, ᾿ ὄντος ἑτέρου ἐν τῷ Πατρί. Καὶ, ‘ὁ Λόγος δὲ σὰρξ ἐγένετο, ʼ οὐκ ἀληθὲς κατʼ αὐτούς· εἰ γὰρ, ἐν ᾧ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο, αὐτὸς ἐγένετο σὰρξ, ὁ δὲ Χριστὸς οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ Λόγος, διʼ οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο, ἄρα ὁ Χριστὸς οὐ γέγονε σὰρξ, ἀλλʼ ἴσως ὠνομάσθη ‘Λόγοςʼ ὁ Χριστός. Καὶ εἰ τοῦτο, πρῶτον μὲν ἄλλος ἂν εἴη παρὰ τὸ ὄνομα· ἔπειτα οὐ διʼ αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο τὰ πάντα, ἀλλʼ ἐν ἐκείνῳ, ἐν ᾦ καὶ ὁ Χριστός. Εἰ δὲ φήσαιεν, ὡς ποιότητα εἶναι ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ τὴν σοφίαν, ἢ αὐτοσοφίαν εἶναι, ἀκολουθήσει τὰ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἄτοπα εἰρημένα. Ἔσται γὰρ σύνθετος, καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτοῦ Υἱὸς καὶ Πατὴρ γινόμενος. Πλὴν ἐλεγκτέον καὶ δυσωπητέον αὐτοὺς, ὅτι ὁ ἐν τῷ Θεῷ Λόγος οὐκ ἂν εἴη κτίσμα, οὐδὲ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος· ὄντος δὲ ἅπαξ ἐν Θεῷ Λόγου, αὐτὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ λέγων, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοὶ, ʼ ὁ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ μονογενὴς ὢν, ἐπειδὴ οὐκ ἄλλος τις ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἐγεννήθη. Εἷς οὗτος Υἱὸς, ὅς ἐστι Λόγος, σοφία, δύναμις· οὐ γὰρ σύνθετος ἐκ τούτων ὁ Θεὸς, ἀλλὰ γεννητικός. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὰ κτίσματα Λόγῳ δημιουργεῖ, οὕτω κατὰ φύσιν τῆς ἰδίας οὐσίας ἔχει γέννημα τὸν Λόγον, διʼ οὗ καὶ δημιουργεῖ, καὶ κτίζει, καὶ οἰκονομεῖ τὰ πάντα. Τῷ γὰρ Λόγῳ καὶ τῇ Σοφίᾳ τὰ πάντα γέγονε, καὶ τῇ διατάξει αὐτοῦ διαμένει τὰ σύμπαντα. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὲ καὶ περὶ ‘Υἰοῦ·’ εἰ ἄγονος, καὶ ἀνενέργητος ὁ Θεός· γέννημα γὰρ αὐτοῦ ὁ Υἱὸς, διʼ οὗ ἐργάζεται· εἰ δὲ μὴ, αἱ αὐταὶ ἐρωτήσεις καὶ τὰ αὐτὰ ἄτοπα τοῖς ἀναισχυντοῦσιν ἀκολουθήσει. ### English translation (Claude) 4. We must say, then: Is God wise and not without Word, or, on the contrary, without wisdom and without Word? If the second, the absurdity is immediate. If the first, we must ask how he is wise and not without Word: did he have the Word and the Wisdom from outside, or from himself? If from outside, there will be someone who gave them to him first, and before he received them he was without wisdom and without Word. But if from himself, it is clear that he is not “from nothing,” nor “there was once when he was not”; for he always was, since he whose image he is always exists. But if they say, “He is wise and not without Word, but he has his own wisdom and his own Word in himself, not Christ, but the one in which he also made Christ,” we must say that, if Christ came to be in that Word, clearly all things did too; and that Word would be the one of whom John says, “All things came to be through him,” and the psalmist, “In wisdom you made all things.” And Christ will be found to be lying when he says, “I am in the Father,” since another is in the Father. And “the Word became flesh” is not true according to them. For if the one in whom all things came to be became flesh, but Christ is not the Word in the Father through whom all things came to be, then Christ did not become flesh, but Christ was perhaps named “Word.” And if so, first, he would be other than the name; and then all things did not come to be through him, but in that other, in whom Christ too came to be. And if they say that wisdom is in the Father as a quality, or that he is wisdom-itself, the absurdities stated above will follow; for he will be composite, becoming his own Son and Father. But we must refute and shame them by showing that the Word in God could not be a creature nor from what is not; and since there is once a Word in God, he would be Christ himself, who says, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me,” who is therefore also only-begotten, since no other was begotten from him. This one is the one Son, who is Word, Wisdom, Power; for God is not composed of these, but is their begetter. For as he creates the creatures by the Word, so, according to the nature of his own substance, he has the Word as offspring, through whom he creates, makes, and governs all things. For all things came to be by the Word and the Wisdom, and by his ordering the whole universe endures. The same holds of “Son”: if God is without offspring, he is also without activity; for the Son is his offspring, through whom he works. If not, the same questions and the same absurdities will follow for these shameless men. ### Scripture references - John 1:3: quotation, high confidence - Ps 104:24 (103:24 LXX): quotation, high confidence - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The Arian view reported here, that God has his own Word distinct from Christ, is the same as that quoted from Arius in Oration 1.5. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 4 (Bright, 225–226; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-4). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 5 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-5 - Source: Bright, 226 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author contrasts creatures, who are “attached” and “joined” to God from outside, with the Son, who is one with the Father and in him. ### Greek text 5. Ἐκ τοῦ Δευτερονομίου· ‘Ὑμεῖς δὲ οἱ προσκείμενοι Κυρίῳ τῷ Θεῷ ὑμῶν, ζῆτε πάντες ἐν τῇ σήμερον.᾿ Ἐκ τούτου δυνατὸν εἰδέναι τὴν διαφορὰν, καὶ γνῶναι ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι κτίσμα ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ Υἱὸς λέγει, ‘Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν·᾿ καὶ, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί·᾿ τὰ δὲ γενητὰ, ὅτʼ ἂν προκόπτῃ, πρόσκειται τῷ Κυρίῳ. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ Λόγος, ὡς ἴδιος, ἐν τῷ Πατρί ἐστι· τὰ δὲ γενητὰ, ἔξωθεν ὄντα, πρόσκειται, ὡς τῇ μὲν φύσει ἀλλότρια, τῇ δὲ προαιρέσει προσκείμενα. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ υἱὸς μὲν ὁ φύσει, ἕν ἐστι μετὰ τοῦ γεννῶντος· ὁ δὲ ἔξωθεν υἱοποιούμενος προσκείσεται τῷ γένει. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ εὐθὺς ἐπιφέρει, ὅτι ‘ποῖον ἔθνος μέγα, ᾧ ἐστιν αὐτῷ Θεὸς ἐγγίζων; ʼ καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ, ‘Θεὸς ἐγγίζων ἐγώ· ʼ τοῖς γὰρ γενητοῖς ἐγγίζει, ὡς ξένοις αὐτοῦ οὖσι· τῷ δὲ Υἱῷ, ὡς ἰδίῳ, οὐκ ἐγγίζει, ἀλλʼ ἐν αὐτῷ ἐστι· καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς οὐ πρόσκειται, ἀλλὰ σύνεστι τῷ Πατρί. Ὅθεν καὶ πάλιν λέγει Μωσῆς ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ Δευτερονομίῳ, ‘τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσεσθε, καὶ αὐτῷ προστεθήσεσθε.᾿ Τὸ δὲ προστιθέμενον ἔξωθεν προστίθεται. ### English translation (Claude) 5. From Deuteronomy: “But you who are attached to the Lord your God are all alive this day.” From this one can see the difference and know that the Son of God is not a creature. For the Son says, “I and the Father are one,” and, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me”; but originated things, when they advance, are attached to the Lord. For the Word, as his own, is in the Father; but originated things, being outside, are attached, as being foreign by nature but attached by choice. For a son by nature is one with his begetter; but one made a son from outside will be attached to the family. For this reason he at once adds, “What great nation has a God drawing near to it?” and elsewhere, “I am a God who draws near.” For he draws near to originated things, as being foreign to him; but he does not draw near to the Son, as his own, but is in him. And the Son is not attached to the Father, but exists with him. Hence Moses says again in the same Deuteronomy, “You shall hear his voice and be joined to him.” And what is joined is joined from outside. ### Scripture references - Deut 4:4: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence - Deut 4:7: quotation, high confidence - Jer 23:23: quotation, high confidence - Deut 13:4 (13:5 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “I am a God who draws near” is Jer 23:23 (LXX). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 5 (Bright, 226; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-5). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 6 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-6 - Source: Bright, 226–227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author explains that Christ, as mediator, takes our weaknesses to the Father and receives God's gifts as man, so that they pass to us. ### Greek text 6. Πρὸς δὲ τὴν ἀσθενῆ καὶ ἀνθρωπίνην ἔννοιαν τῶν Ἀρειανῶν, διὰ τὸ ὑπονοεῖν τὸν Κύριον ἐνδεᾶ, ὅταν λέγῃ, ‘ἐδόθη μοι, ᾿ καὶ ἐὰν λέγῃ ὁ Παῦλος, ‘διὰ τοῦτο ὑπερύψωσεν αὐτὸν, ʼ καὶ, ‘ἐκάθισεν ἐν δεξιᾷ, ʼ καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα, λεκτέον ὅτι ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν, Λόγος ὢν Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐφόρεσε σῶμα, καὶ γέγονε καὶ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, ἵνα, μεσίτης γενόμενος Θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων, τὰ μὲν Θεοῦ ἡμῖν, τὰ δὲ ἡμῶν τῷ Θεῷ διακονῇ. Ὅταν οὖν λέγηται πεινᾷν, καὶ δακρύειν, καὶ κοπιᾷν, καὶ ‘Ἐλωῒ, Ἐλωῒ, ’ ἀνθρώπινα ὄντα καὶ ἡμέτερα πάθη δέχεται παρʼ ἡμῶν, καὶ τῷ Πατρὶ ἀναφέρει, πρεσβεύων ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, ἵνα ἐν αὐτῷ ἐξαφανισθῇ· ὅταν δὲ, ὅτι ‘ἐδόθη μοι ἐξουσία, ʼ καὶ, ‘ἔλαβον, ʼ καὶ, ‘διὰ τοῦτο ὑπερύψωσεν αὐτὸν ὁ Θεὸς, ʼ τὰ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐστι χαρίσματα διʼ αὐτοῦ διδόμενα. Οὐ γὰρ ὁ Λόγος ἐνδεὴς ἦν, ἢ γέγονε πώποτε· οὐδὲ πάλιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι ἱκανοὶ ἦσαν ἑαυτοῖς διακονῆσαι ταῦτα· διὰ δὲ τοῦ Λόγου δίδοται ἡμῖν· διὰ τοῦτο, ὡς αὐτῷ ‘διδόμενα, ʼ ἡμῖν μεταδίδοται· διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ἐνηνθρώπησεν, ἵνα, ὡς αὐτῷ διδόμενα, εἰς ἡμᾶς διαβῇ. Ἅνθρωπος γὰρ ψιλὸς οὐκ ἂν ἠξιώθη τούτων. Λόγος δὲ πάλιν μόνος οὐκ ἂν ἐδεήθη τούτων. Συνήφθη οὖν ἡμῖν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ τότε ἐξουσίαν ἡμῖν μετέδωκε, καὶ ‘ὑπερύψωσεν.᾿ Ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ γὰρ ὢν ὁ Λόγος ‘ὑπερύψωσεʼ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· καὶ ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ ὄντος τοῦ Λόγου, ‘ἔλαβεν ὁ ἄνθρωπος. Ἐπεὶ οὖν τοῦ Λόγου ὄντος ἐν σαρκὶ, ὑψώθη ὁ ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ἔλαβεν ἐξουσίαν, διὰ τοῦτο εἰς τὸν Λόγον ἀναφέρεται ταῦτα, ἐπειδὴ διʼ αὐτὸν ἐδόθη· διὰ γὰρ τὸν ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ Λόγον ἐδόθη ταῦτα τὰ χαρίσματα. Καὶ ὥσπερ ‘ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, ʼ οὕτω καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος τὰ διὰ τοῦ Λόγου εἴληφε. Πάντα γὰρ ὅσα ὁ ἄνθρωπος εἴληφεν, ὁ Λόγος λέγεται εἰληφέναι· ἵνα δειχθῇ ὅτι οὐκ ἄξιος ὢν ὁ ἄνθρωπος λαβεῖν, ὅσον κεν εἰς τὴν ἀὐτοῦ φύσιν, ὅμως διὰ τὸν γενόμενον σάρκα Λόγον εἴληφεν. Ὅθεν ἐάν τι λέγηται ‘δίδοσθαιʼ τῷ Κυρίῳ, ἤ τι τοιοῦτον, νοεῖν δεῖ μὴ αὐτῷ ὡς χρῄζοντι δίδοσθαι, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ διὰ τοῦ Λόγου. Καὶ γὰρ πᾶς πρεσβεύων ὑπὲρ ἄλλου, αὐτὸς τὴν χάριν λαμβάνει, οὐ χρήζων, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸν ὑπὲρ οὗ πρεσβεύει. ### English translation (Claude) 6. But against the weak and human notion of the Arians, who suppose the Lord to be in need when he says, “It was given to me,” and when Paul says, “therefore he highly exalted him,” and, “he sat down at the right hand,” and such things, we must say that our Lord, being the Word and Son of God, bore a body and became Son of Man as well, so that, having become mediator between God and men, he might minister the things of God to us and ours to God. So when he is said to hunger, weep, and grow weary, and to cry “Eloi, Eloi,” he receives from us these human sufferings, which are ours, and brings them to the Father, interceding for us, so that in him they may be done away with. And when it is said, “All authority was given to me,” and, “I received,” and, “therefore God highly exalted him,” these are gifts from God to us, given through him. For the Word was not in need, nor has he ever become so; nor, again, were men able to supply these things for themselves; but they are given to us through the Word. For this reason they are imparted to us as though “given” to him. For this is why he became man: so that, as given to him, they might pass over to us. For a mere man would not have been counted worthy of them; and again the Word alone would not have needed them. So the Word was joined to us, and then imparted authority to us and “highly exalted” us. For the Word, being in man, “highly exalted” man; and since the Word was in man, man “received.” Since, then, when the Word was in the flesh, man was exalted and received authority, these things are referred to the Word, since they were given because of him; for these gifts were given because of the Word in man. And as “the Word became flesh,” so man has received what comes through the Word. For all that man has received, the Word is said to have received, to show that man, though not worthy to receive as far as his own nature goes, has nevertheless received because of the Word who became flesh. So if anything is said to be “given” to the Lord, or anything of the kind, we must understand that it is given not to him as needing it, but to man through the Word. For everyone who intercedes for another receives the favor himself, not needing it, but because of the one for whom he intercedes. ### Scripture references - Matt 28:18: quotation, high confidence - Phil 2:9: quotation, high confidence - Heb 1:3: quotation, high confidence - 1 Tim 2:5: allusion, high confidence - Matt 4:2: allusion, high confidence - John 11:35: allusion, high confidence - John 4:6: allusion, high confidence - Mark 15:34: quotation, high confidence - John 10:18: allusion, medium confidence - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 6 (Bright, 226–227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-6). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 7 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-7 - Source: Bright, 227 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author explains that Christ receives the Father's gifts and exaltation as man for us, and gives thanks for them as his own. ### Greek text 7. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὰς ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν λαμβάνει οὐκ ἀσθενῶν, καὶ πεινᾷ οὐ πεινῶν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἡμῶν ἀναπέμπει εἰς τὸ ἐξαλειφθῆναι· οὕτω τὰς ἀντὶ τῶν ἀσθενειῶν παρὰ Θεοῦ δωρεὰς πάλιν αὐτὸς δέχεται, ἵνα συναφθεὶς ἄνθρωπος μεταλαβεῖν δυνηθῇ. Λέγει γοῦν ὁ Κύριος, πάντα ὅσα δέδωκάς μοι, δέδωκα αὐτοῖς·᾿ καὶ πάλιν, ‘ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν ἐρωτῶ.’ Ἠρώτα γὰρ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τὰ ἡμῶν ἀναδεχόμενος, καὶ ἐδίδου ἃ ἐλάμβανεν. Ἐπειδὴ οὖν, συναφθέντος τοῦ Λόγου τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, εἰς τὸν Λόγον ἀποβλέπων ἐχαρίζετο ὁ Πατὴρ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ τὸ ὑψωθῆναι, τὸ ἔχειν πᾶσαν ἐξουσίαν, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα, διὰ τοῦτο αὐτῷ τῷ Λόγῳ πάντα ἀναφέρεται, καὶ ὡς αὐτῷ ‘διδόμενάʼ ἐστιν, ἃ διʼ αὐτοῦ ἡμεῖς λαμβάνομεν. Ὡς γὰρ διʼ ἡμᾶς ἐνηνθρώπησεν αὐτὸς, οὕτως ἡμεῖς διʼ αὐτὸν ὑψούμεθα. Οὐδὲν οὖν ἄτοπον εἰ, ὥσπερ διʼ ἡμᾶς ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν, καὶ διʼ ἡμᾶς λέγεται ὑπερυψῶσθαι. ‘ Ἐχαρίσατοʼ οὖν ‘αὐτῷ, ᾿ ἀντὶ τοῦ ‘ἡμῖν διʼ αὐτὸνʼ καὶ ‘ὑπερύψωσεν, ʼ ἀντὶ τοῦ ‘ἡμᾶς ἐν αὐτῷ.᾿ Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Λόγος, ἡμῶν ὑψουμένων, καὶ λαμβανόντων, καὶ βοηθουμένων, ὡς αὐτὸς ὑψούμενος, καὶ λαμβάνων, καὶ βοηθούμενος, εὐχαριστεῖ τῷ Πατρὶ, τὰ ἡμέτερα εἰς ἑαυτὸν ἀναφέρων, καὶ λέγων, ‘πάντα ὅσα δέδωκάς μοι, δέδωκα αὐτοῖς.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 7. For just as he takes our weaknesses, not being weak, and hungers, not hungering, but sends up what is ours to be wiped out, so in turn he himself receives the gifts from God given in place of the weaknesses, so that man, joined to him, may be able to share in them. So the Lord says, “All that you have given me I have given them,” and again, “I pray for them.” For he prayed for us, taking up what is ours, and he gave what he received. Since, then, when the Word was joined to man, the Father, looking to the Word, granted man to be exalted, to have all authority, and all such things, for this reason everything is referred to the Word himself, and what we receive through him is as though “given” to him. For as he became man because of us, so we are exalted because of him. So there is nothing absurd if, just as he humbled himself because of us, he is also said to have been highly exalted because of us. So “he granted him” means “to us because of him,” and “he highly exalted” means “us in him.” And the Word himself, when we are exalted, receive, and are helped, gives thanks to the Father as though he himself were exalted, receiving, and helped, referring what is ours to himself and saying, “All that you have given me I have given them.” ### Scripture references - Matt 8:17: allusion, high confidence - John 17:8: quotation, medium confidence - John 17:22: allusion, medium confidence - John 17:9: quotation, high confidence - Phil 2:8: allusion, high confidence - Phil 2:9: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “All that you have given me I have given them” combines John 17:7–8 and 17:22. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 7 (Bright, 227; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-7). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 8 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-8 - Source: Bright, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author shows that the Arians and their opponents who deny the Son's subsistence each contradict themselves. ### Greek text 8. Οἱ περὶ Εὐσέβιον οἱ Ἀρειομανῖται, ἀρχὴν τοῦ εἶναι τῷ Υἱῷ διδόντες, προσποιοῦνται μὴ βούλεσθαι ἀρχὴν αὐτὸν ἔχειν βασιλείας· ἔστι δὲ γελοῖον· ὁ γὰρ ἀρχὴν τοῦ εἶναι διδοὺς τῷ Υἱῷ, πρόδηλον ὅτι καὶ τοῦ βασιλεύειν ἀρχὴν δίδωσιν αὐτῷ· ὥστε ὁμολογοῦντες ὃ ἀρνοῦνται, τυφλώττουσι. Καὶ πάλιν οἱ λέγοντες μόνον ὄνομα εἶναι ‘Υἱοῦ, ᾿ ἀνούσιον δὲ καὶ ἀνυπόστατον εἶναι τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τουτέστι τὸν Λόγον τοῦ Πατρὸς, προσποιοῦνται ἀγανακτεῖν κατὰ τῶν λεγόντων, ‘ἦν ποτε ὅτε οὐκ ἦν·᾿ ἔστι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο γελοῖον· οἱ γὰρ ὅλως τὸ εἶναι αὐτῷ μὴ διδόντες, ἀγανακτοῦσι κατὰ τῶν κᾂν χρόνῳ διδόντων. Καὶ οὗτοι οὖν ὅπερ ἀρνοῦνται, διὰ τοῦ ἐπιτιμᾷν τοῖς ἄλλοις, ὁμολογοῦσι. Πάλιν τε οἱ περὶ Εὐσέβιον, Υἱὸν ὁμολογοῦντες, ἀρνοῦνται αὐτὸν εἶναι φύσει Λόγον, καὶ κατʼ ἐπίνοιαν ‘Λόγονʼ λέγεσθαι τὸν Υἱὸν βούλονται· οἱ δὲ ἕτεροι, Λόγον ὁμολογοῦντες, ἀρνοῦνται αὐτὸν εἶναι Υἱὸν, καὶ κατʼ ἐπίνοιαν ‘Υἱὸνʼ λέγεσθαι τὸν Λόγον βούλονται, ἐξ ἴσου κενοβατοῦντες. ### English translation (Claude) 8. Eusebius and his followers, the Ariomaniacs, while giving the Son a beginning of being, pretend not to want him to have a beginning of kingship. But this is ridiculous; for whoever gives the Son a beginning of being clearly gives him a beginning of reigning as well; so that they are blind, confessing what they deny. And again, those who say that “Son” is only a name, and that the Son of God, that is, the Word of the Father, is without substance and without subsistence, pretend to be angry with those who say, “there was once when he was not.” This too is ridiculous; for those who do not give him being at all are angry with those who give it to him at least in time. So these too, by rebuking others, confess what they deny. And again, Eusebius and his followers, confessing a Son, deny that he is Word by nature, and want the Son to be called “Word” in thought only; while the others, confessing a Word, deny that he is Son, and want the Word to be called “Son” in thought only, both walking on empty air alike. ### Translation notes - “Those who say that ‘Son’ is only a name” are probably Marcellus of Ancyra and his followers, who taught that the Word became “Son” only at the incarnation and that his kingship would end; the Arians of Eusebius's party attacked this. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 8 (Bright, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-8). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 9 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-9 - Source: Bright, 228 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author explains John 10:30: Father and Son are two, yet one in Godhead, the Son being of one substance with the Father, against both division and Sabellius. ### Greek text 9. ‘Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν Τὰ δύο ἓν εἶναί φατε, ἢ τὸ ἓν διώνυμον, ἢ πάλιν τὸ ἓν εἰς δύο διῃρῆσθαι. Εἰ μὲν οὖν τὸ ἓν εἰς δύο διῄρηται, ἀνάγκη σῶμα εἶναι τὸ διαιρεθὲν, καὶ μηδέτερον τέλειον, μέρος γὰρ ἑκάτερον καὶ οὐχ ὅλον· εἰ δὲ τὸ ἓν διώνυμον, Σαβελλίου τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα, τὸν αὐτὸν Υἱὸν καὶ Πατέρα λέγοντος, καὶ ἑκάτερον ἀναιροῦντος, ὅτε μὲν ‘Υἱὸς, ’ τὸν Πατέρα, ὅτε δὲ ‘Πατὴρ, ’ τὸν Υἱόν. Εἰ δὲ τὰ δύο ἓν, ἀνάγκη δύο μὲν εἶναι, ἓν δὲ κατὰ τὴν θεότητα, καὶ κατὰ τὸ ὁμοούσιον εἶναι τὸν Υἱὸν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Πατρὸς εἶναι τὸν Λόγον· ὥστε δύο μὲν εἶναι, ὅτι Πατήρ ἐστι καὶ Υἱὸς, ὅ ἐστι Λόγος, ἓν δὲ, ὅτι εἴς Θεός. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ οὕτως ἐστὶν, ἔδει εἰπεῖν, ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ Πατὴρ, ʼ ἢ ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατήρ εἰμι.᾿ Νῦν δὲ ἐν τῷ ‘ἐγὼ, ᾿ τὸν Υἱὸν σημαίνει· ἐν δὲ τῷ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, ᾿ τὸν γεννήσαντα· ἐν δὲ τῷ ‘ἓν, ’ τὴν μίαν θεότητα καὶ τὸ ὁμοούσιον αὐτοῦ. Οὐ γὰρ καθʼ Ἕλληνας ὁ αὐτὸς σοφὸς καὶ σοφία ἐστὶν, ἢ ὁ αὐτὸς Πατὴρ καὶ Λόγος ἐστίν· ἀπρεπὲς γὰρ αὐτὸν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρα εἶναι· ἡ δὲ θεία διδασκαλία οἶδε Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν, καὶ σοφὸν καὶ σοφίαν, καὶ Θεὸν καὶ Λόγον· καθόλου μέντοι φυλάττει ἀδιαίρετον, καὶ ἀδιάσπαστον, καὶ ἀμέριστον κατὰ πάντα. ### English translation (Claude) 9. “I and the Father are one.” You say either that the two are one, or that the one has two names, or again that the one has been divided into two. If the one has been divided into two, what is divided must be a body, and neither part complete, for each is a part and not a whole. If the one has two names, this is the device of Sabellius, who says that the Son and the Father are the same, and abolishes each: the Father when there is a “Son,” and the Son when there is a “Father.” But if the two are one, then necessarily they are two, but one in Godhead, and in the Son's being “of one substance” with the Father, and in the Word's being from the Father himself; so that they are two, because there is a Father and a Son, who is the Word; but one, because there is one God. For if it were not so, he should have said, “I am the Father,” or, “I and the Father am.” But as it is, in “I” he signifies the Son; in “and the Father,” the one who begot him; and in “one,” the one Godhead and his being of one substance. For it is not, as the Greeks hold, that the same is wise and wisdom, or that the same is Father and Word; for it is unfitting for him to be his own Father. But the divine teaching knows Father and Son, wise and Wisdom, God and Word; yet in every way it keeps him undivided, unseparated, and without partition in all respects. ### Scripture references - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “Of one substance” renders ὁμοούσιος (literally “the being of one substance”). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 9 (Bright, 228; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-9). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 10 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-10 - Source: Bright, 229 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author answers the charge of teaching two gods: Father and Son are two, yet one God, like fire and its radiance. ### Greek text 10. Ἐὰν δὲ, ὅτι δύο ἐστὶν ὁ Πατὴρ καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς, ἀκούων τις διαβάλλοι, ὡς ‘δύο θεῶνʼ καταγγελλομένων (τοιαῦτα γάρ τινες ἑαυτοῖς ἀναπλάττονται, καὶ εὐθέως γελῶσιν, ὅτι ‘δύο θεοὺς λέγετεʼ)· λεκτέον πρὸς τοὺς τοιούτους· Εἰ ὁ Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν γινώσκων δύο θεοὺς λέγει, ὥρα καὶ τὸν λέγοντα ‘ἕνα, ’ ἀναιρεῖν τὸν Υἱὸν, καὶ Σαβελλίζειν. Εἰ γὰρ ὁ λέγων ‘δύοʼ Ἑλληνίζει, οὐκοῦν ὁ λέγων ‘ἓνʼ Σαβελλίζει. Τοῦτο δὲ οὐκ ἔστι· μὴ γένοιτο, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ ὁ λέγων ‘Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν δύοʼ ἕνα Θεὸν λέγει, οὕτως ὁ λέγων ‘ἕνα Θεὸν δύο φρονείτω Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν, ἕν ὄντας τῇ θεότητι, καὶ τῷ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἀμέριστον καὶ ἀδιαίρετον καὶ ἀχώριστον εἶναι τὸν Λόγον ἀπὸ τοῦ Πατρός. ἔστω δὲ παράδειγμα ἀνθρώπινον, τὸ πῦρ καὶ τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἀπαύγασμα, δύο μὲν τῷ εἶναι καὶ ὁρᾶσθαι, ἓν δὲ τῷ ἐξ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀδιαίρετον εἶναι τὸ ἀπαύγασμα αὐτοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) 10. And if anyone, hearing that the Father and the Son are two, slanders us as proclaiming “two gods” (for some invent such things for themselves and at once laugh, saying, “You speak of two gods”), we must say to such people: If one who acknowledges Father and Son speaks of two gods, it is time for one who says “one” to abolish the Son and Sabellianize. For if one who says “two” speaks like a pagan, then one who says “one” speaks like Sabellius. But this is not so, far from it! Rather, just as one who says “Father and Son are two” speaks of one God, so let one who says “one God” think of the Father and the Son as two, being one in Godhead, and in the Word's being from him undivided, indivisible, and inseparable from the Father. Let a human example serve: fire and the radiance from it are two in being and in being seen, but one in that its radiance is from it and undivided. ### Translation notes - “Speaks like a pagan” renders Ἑλληνίζει (literally “Hellenizes”), i.e. teaches many gods as the pagans do. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 10 (Bright, 229; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-10). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 11 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-11 - Source: Bright, 229 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that those who say the Word was put forth for creation, like the Arians who say he was created for us, make the Word depend on us and God inactive before. ### Greek text 11. Εἰς τὴν αὐτὴν μὲν ἄνοιαν τοῖς Ἀρειανοῖς πίπτουσι· κἀκεῖνοι γάρ φασι διʼ ἡμᾶς αὐτὸν ἐκτίσθαι, ἵνα ἡμᾶς κτίσῃ, ὥσπερ τοῦ Θεοῦ περιμένοντος τὴν ἡμετέραν κτίσιν, ἵνα ἢ ‘προβάληταιʼ κατʼ ἐκείνους, ἢ ‘κτίσῃʼ κατὰ τούτους. Ἀρειανοὶ μὲν οὖν πλέον ἡμῖν ἢ τῷ Υἱῷ χαρίζονται· οὐ γὰρ ἡμεῖς διʼ ἐκεῖνον, φασὶν, ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνος διʼ ἡμᾶς γέγονεν· εἴγε διὰ τοῦτο ἐκτίσθη καὶ ὑπέστη, ἵνα ἡμᾶς διʼ αὐτοῦ κτίσῃ ὁ Θεός. Οὕτοι δὲ, ἐξ ἴσου ἢ καὶ μειζόνως ἀσεβοῦντες, ἔλαττον τῷ Θεῷ ἢ ἡμῖν διδόασιν. Ἡμεῖς γὰρ πολλάκις καὶ σιωπῶντες μὲν, ἐνθυμούμενοι δὲ, ἐνεργοῦμεν, ὥστε τὰ ἐκ τῆς ἐνθυμήσεως καὶ εἰδωλοποιεῖσθαι· τὸν δὲ Θεὸν σιωπῶντα μὲν ἀνενέργητον, λαλοῦντα δὲ ἰσχύειν αὐτὸν βούλονται· εἴγε σιωπῶν μὲν οὐκ ἠδύνατο ποιεῖν, λαλῶν δὲ κτίζειν ἤρξατο. Ἐρέσθαι γὰρ αὐτοὺς δίκαιον, εἰ ὁ Λόγος, ἐν τῷ Θεῷ ὢν, τέλειος ἦν, ὥστε καὶ ποιεῖν δύνασθαι. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἀτελὴς ἦν, ἐν Θεῷ ὢν, γεννηθεὶς δὲ τέλειος γέγονεν, ἡμεῖς αἴτιοι τῆς τελειότητος αὐτοῦ, εἴγε διʼ ἡμᾶς γεγέννηται· διʼ ἡμᾶς γὰρ καὶ τὸ δύνασθαι ποιεῖν προσείληφεν. Εἰ δὲ τέλειος ἦν ἐν Θεῷ, ὥστε καὶ ποιεῖν δύνασθαι, περιττὴ ἡ γέννησις αὐτοῦ· ἐδύνατο γὰρ, καὶ ἐν Πατρὶ ὢν, δημιουργεῖν· ὥστε ἢ οὐ γεγέννηται, ἢ γεγέννηται οὐ διʼ ἡμᾶς, ἀλλʼ ὅτι ἀεὶ ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός ἐστιν. Ἡ γὰρ γέννησις αὐτοῦ οὐ τὴν ἡμῶν κτίσιν δείκνυσιν, ἀλλὰ τὸ ‘ἐκ ΘΕοῦʼ εἶναι· ἦν γὰρ καὶ πρὸ τῆς κτίσεως ἡμῶν. ### English translation (Claude) 11. They fall into the same folly as the Arians. For the Arians too say that he was created for us, so that he might create us, as if God were waiting for our creation, in order either to “put him forth,” according to these men, or to “create” him, according to those. So the Arians grant more to us than to the Son; for they say that we did not come to be for his sake, but he for ours, if indeed he was created and came to subsist for this purpose, that God might create us through him. And these men, equally or even more impious, give less to God than to us. For we are often active even while silent, by thinking, so that we form images from what we think. But they want God to be inactive when silent, and to have power only when speaking, if indeed he could not make while silent and began to create when speaking. It is fair to ask them whether the Word, being in God, was complete, so as to be able to make. If he was incomplete while in God, and became complete when begotten, we are the cause of his completeness, if indeed he was begotten for us; for it was for us that he gained the ability to make. But if he was complete in God, so as to be able to make, his begetting is superfluous; for he could create even while in the Father. So either he has not been begotten, or he has been begotten not for us but because he is always from the Father. For his begetting shows not our creation but his being “from God”; for he existed even before our creation. ### Translation notes - “These men” are the followers of Marcellus of Ancyra, who taught that the Word, silent in God, was “put forth” (προβάλλεσθαι) as active energy for creation and the incarnation, and would return into God at the end. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 11 (Bright, 229; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-11). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 12 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-12 - Source: Bright, 230–231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that the idea of the Word going forth from God for creation and returning at the end would make God change and creation come and go without end. ### Greek text 12. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Πατρὸς τολμῶντες φανήσονται. Εἰ γὰρ σιωπῶν οὐκ ἠδύνατο ποιεῖν, ἀνάγκη προσειληφέναι αὐτὸν δύναμιν γεννήσαντα, ὅ ἐστι, λαλήσαντα. Καὶ πόθεν προσείληφε; καὶ διὰ τί; Εἰ δὲ ἠδύνατο, ἔχων ἐν ἑαυτῷ τὸν Λόγον, ποιεῖν, περιττῶς γεννᾷ, δυνάμενος καὶ σιωπῶν ποιεῖν. Ἔπειτα, εἰ πρὸ τοῦ γεννηθῆναι ἐν τῷ Θεῷ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, ἄρα γεννηθεὶς ἐκτὸς καὶ ἔξω τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστιν. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, πῶς νῦν λέγει, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί;’ Εἰ δὲ νῦν ἐν τῷ Πατρί ἐστιν, ἄρα ἀεὶ ἦν ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, ὥσπερ καὶ νῦν ἐστι, καὶ περιττὸν τὸ λέγειν, ‘Διʼ ἡμᾶς γεγέννηται, καὶ μεθʼ ἡμᾶς ἀνατρέχει, ἵνα ᾖ ὥσπερ ἦν.᾿ Οὐ γὰρ ἦν ὅπερ οὐκ ἔστι νῦν, οὐδέ ἐστιν ὅπερ οὐκ ἦν· ἀλλʼ ἔστιν ὥσπερ ἦν ἀεὶ, καὶ ὡσαύτως καὶ κατὰ τὰ αὐτὰ ἔχων· ἐπεὶ ἀτελὴς καὶ τρεπτὸς φανήσεται. Εἰ γὰρ, ὅπερ ἦν τοῦτʼ ἔσται μετὰ ταῦτα, ὡς νῦν οὐκ ὢν, δῆλον ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι νῦν ὅπερ ἦν καὶ ἔσται. Λέγω δέ· εἰ ἐν Θεῷ ἦν πρότερον, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πάλιν ἔσται, δῆλον ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι νῦν ἐν τῷ Θεῷ ὁ Λόγος. Ἀλλʼ ἐλέγχει τούτους ὁ Κύριος, λέγων, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί·’ οὕτω γάρ ἐστι νῦν, ὥσπερ ἦν ἀεί. Εἰ δὲ οὕτω νῦν ἐστιν, ὥσπερ ἦν ἀεὶ, δῆλον ὅτι οὐ ποτὲ μὲν ἐγεννᾶτο, ποτὲ δὲ οὔ· οὐδὲ ποτὲ μὲν ἐν Θεῷ ἡσυχία ἦν, ποτὲ δὲ ἐλάλει· ἀλλʼ ἔστιν ἀεὶ Πατὴρ, καὶ Υἱὸς ὁ τούτου Λόγος, οὐκ ὀνόματι μόνον ‘Λόγος, ’ οὐδὲ κατʼ ἐπίνοιαν ‘Υἱὸςʼ ὁ Λόγος, ἀλλʼ ὑπάρχων ὁμοούσιος τῷ Πατρὶ, οὐ διʼ ἡμᾶς γεννηθεὶς, ἡμεῖς γὰρ διʼ ἐκεῖνον γεγόναμεν. Ἐπεὶ εἰ διʼ ἡμᾶς ἐγεννήθη, καὶ ἐν τῷ γεγεννῆσθαι αὐτὸν ἐκτίσθημεν, καὶ τῇ γεννήσει αὐτοῦ συνέστηκεν ἡ κτίσις, ἀνατρέχει δὲ ἵνα ᾖ ὅπερ πρότερον ἦν, πρῶτον μὲν ἔσται πάλιν μὴ γεννώμενος ὁ γεννηθείς. Εἰ γὰρ ἡ πρόοδος αὐτοῦ γέννησίς ἐστιν, ἡ ἀναδρομὴ πάλιν παῦλα τῆς γεννήσεως· γενομένου γὰρ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ Θεῷ, σιωπήσει πάλιν ὁ Θεός. Εἰ δὲ σιωπήσει, ἔσται ὅπερ ἦν, σιωπῶντος αὐτοῦ, ἡσυχία, καὶ οὐ κτίσις· παύσεται ἄρα ἡ κτίσις. Ὥσπερ γὰρ προελθόντος τοῦ Λόγου, γέγονεν ἡ κτίσις, καὶ ὑπῆρξεν, οὕτω παλινδρομοῦντος τοῦ Λόγου, οὐχ ὑπάρξει ἡ κτίσις. Τίς οὖν χρεία τοῦ γενέσθαι, εἰ παύσεται; ἢ τί καὶ ἐλάλει ὁ Θεὸς, ἵνα μετὰ ταῦτα σιωπήσῃ; τί δὲ προεβάλλετο, ὃν ἀνακαλεῖται; τί δὲ καὶ ἐγέννα, οὗ τὴν γέννησιν παύσειν ἤθελε; Τί δὲ πάλιν ἔσται, ἄδηλον, ἢ γὰρ σιωπήσει ἀεὶ, ἢ πάλιν γεννήσει, καὶ ἑτέραν κτίσιν ἐπινοήσει· οὐ γὰρ τὴν αὐτὴν ποιήσει (ἢ γὰρ ἂν διέμεινεν ἡ γενομένη) ἀλλʼ ἑτέραν· ἀκολούθως δὲ καὶ ταύτην παύσει, καὶ ἑτέραν ἐπινοήσει, καὶ τοῦτο εἰς ἄπειρον. ### English translation (Claude) 12. They will be shown to be equally daring about the Father. For if, while silent, he could not make, he must have gained power by begetting, that is, by speaking. And where did he gain it from, and why? But if he could make while having the Word in himself, he begets superfluously, since he could make even while silent. Then, if the Word was in God before he was begotten, then once begotten he is outside and external to God. And if so, how does he now say, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me”? But if he is now in the Father, then he always was in the Father, as he now is, and it is superfluous to say, “He was begotten for us, and after us he runs back, so as to be as he was.” For he was not what he is not now, nor is he what he was not; but he is as he always was, being the same and in the same respects; otherwise he will appear incomplete and changeable. For if what he was, he will be later, as though he is not so now, it is clear that he is not now what he was and will be. I mean: if he was in God before and will be again afterwards, it is clear that the Word is not now in God. But the Lord refutes them, saying, “I am in the Father, and the Father is in me”; for he is now as he always was. And if he is now as he always was, it is clear that he was not begotten at one time and not at another, nor was there at one time stillness in God and at another speech; but there is always a Father, and a Son who is his Word, not “Word” in name only, nor the Word “Son” in thought only, but being of one substance with the Father, not begotten for us, for we came to be for him. For if he was begotten for us, and we were created in his being begotten, and creation holds together by his begetting, but he runs back so as to be what he was before, then first the one begotten will again be not begotten. For if his going forth is begetting, his running back in turn is the end of the begetting; for when he has come to be in God, God will be silent again. And if he is silent, there will be what there was when he was silent, stillness and not creation; so creation will cease. For just as when the Word went forth creation came to be and existed, so when the Word runs back creation will not exist. What need, then, was there for it to come to be, if it will cease? Or why did God speak, only to be silent afterwards? Why did he put forth one whom he calls back? Why did he beget one whose begetting he meant to end? And what will be afterwards is unclear: either he will be silent forever, or he will beget again and devise another creation (for he will not make the same one, or else the one that had come to be would have remained), but another; and consistently he will end this one too and devise another, and so to infinity. ### Scripture references - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The view refuted, that the Word will “run back” into God at the end, is that of Marcellus of Ancyra. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 12 (Bright, 230–231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-12). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 13 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-13 - Source: Bright, 231 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author traces the idea of the unity “broadening” into a trinity to the Stoics and shows that it implies change in God and leads to Sabellianism. ### Greek text 13. Τοῦτο δὲ ἴσως ἀπὸ τῶν Στωϊκῶν ὑπέλαβε, διαβεβαιουμένων ‘συστέλλεσθαιʼ καὶ πάλιν ‘ἐκτείνεσθαιʼ τὸν Θεὸν μετὰ τῆς κτίσεως, καὶ ἀπείρως παύεσθαι, Τὸ γὰρ πλατυνόμενον ἀπὸ στενότητος πλατύνεται, καὶ τὸ ἐκτεινόμενον συνεσταλμένον ἐκτείνεται· καὶ αὐτὸ μὲν ἔστι, πλέον δὲ οὐδὲν ἢ πάθος ὑπομένει. Εἰ τοίνυν ἡ μονὰς, πλατυνθεῖσα, γέγονε τριὰς, ἡ δὲ μονάς ἐστιν ὁ Πατὴρ, τριὰς δὲ Πατὴρ, Υἱὸς, ἅγιον Πνεῦμα, πρῶτον μὲν πλατυνθεῖσα ἡ μονὰς, πάθος ὑπέμεινε, καὶ γέγονεν ὅπερ οὐκ ἦν· ἐπλατύνθη γὰρ, οὐκ οὖσα πλατεῖα· ἔπειτα εἰ αὐτὴ ἡ μονὰς ἐπλατύνθη εἰς τριάδα, τριὰς δέ ἐστι Πατὴρ καὶ Υἱὸς καὶ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα, ὁ αὐτὸς ἄρα Πατὴρ γέγονε καὶ Υἱὸς καὶ Πνεῦμα κατὰ Σαβέλλιον· ἐκτὸς εἰ μὴ ἡ λεγομένη παρʼ αὐτῷ μονὰς ἄλλο τί ἐστι παρὰ τὸν Πατέρα· οὐκ ἔτι οὖν ‘πλατύνεσθαιʼ ἔδει λέγειν, ἀλλʼ ἡ μονὰς τριῶν ποιητικὴ, ὥστε εἶναι μονάδα, εἶτα καὶ Πατέρα, καὶ Υἱὸν, καὶ Πνεῦμα. Εἰ γὰρ ἐπλατύνθη αὕτη, καὶ ἐξέτεινεν ἑαυτὴν, αὐτὴ ἂν εἴη ὅπερ ἐξετάθη. Καὶ τριὰς μὲν, πλατυνθεῖσα, οὐκ ἔτι μονάς ἐστι· μονὰς δὲ οὖσα, οὔπω ἦν τριάς. Καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἄρα ὢν οὔπω ἦν Υἱὸς καὶ Πνεῦμα· γενόμενος δὲ ταῦτα, οὐκ ἔτι Πατὴρ μόνον ἐστί. Ταῦτα δὲ καταψευδόμενος ἄν τις εἴποι, τοῦ Θεοῦ σῶμα καὶ παθητὸν αὐτὸν εἰσάγων· τί γάρ ἐστι πλατύνεσθαι ἢ πάθος τοῦ πλατυνομένου; ἢ τί ἐστι τὸ πλατυνόμενον, ἢ τὸ πρότερον μὴ τοιοῦτον, ἀλλὰ στενὸν τυγχάνον; ταὐτὸν γάρ ἐστι, χρόνῳ μόνον διαφέρον ἑαυτοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) 13. He perhaps took this from the Stoics, who firmly hold that God “contracts” and again “expands” with the creation, and comes to rest without end. For what is broadened is broadened from narrowness, and what is expanded is expanded from being contracted; it is itself the same, and does nothing more than undergo a change. If, then, the unity was broadened and became a trinity, and the unity is the Father, while the trinity is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, then, first, the unity, being broadened, underwent a change and became what it was not; for it was broadened, not being broad. Next, if the unity itself was broadened into a trinity, and the trinity is Father and Son and Holy Spirit, then the Father himself became Son and Spirit, as Sabellius says; unless the unity he speaks of is something other than the Father. In that case he ought not to say “broadened,” but that the unity makes three, so that there is a unity, and then Father, Son, and Spirit. For if it was broadened and extended itself, it would itself be what was extended. And the trinity, once broadened, is no longer a unity; and while a unity, it was not yet a trinity. So he who was Father was not yet Son and Spirit; and having become these, he is no longer Father only. Anyone who says these things would be speaking falsely, bringing in a body for God and making him subject to change. For what is being broadened but a change in what is broadened? Or what is broadened but what was not so before but was narrow? For it is the same thing, differing from itself only in time. ### Translation notes - “He” is an unnamed teacher, probably Marcellus of Ancyra, who spoke of the divine unity being “broadened” (πλατύνεσθαι) into a triad. The Stoics held that the world is periodically resolved into God and then expanded again. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 13 (Bright, 231; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-13). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 14 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-14 - Source: Bright, 231–232 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues from Paul's and Noah's use of “broaden” that broadening leaves a thing the same, so a unity broadened into a trinity would still be the Father alone, with absurd consequences. ### Greek text 14. Τοῦτο καὶ ὁ θεῖος γινώσκει ἀπόστολος, πρὸς Κορινθίους ἐπιστέλλων, ‘Μὴ στενοχωρεῖσθε ἐν ἡμῖν· πλατύνθητε δὲ καὶ ὑμεῖς, Κορίνθιοι· τοὺς γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ στενότητος εἰς πλατυσμὸν μεταβάλλειν συμβουλεύει, Ὥσπερ δὲ εἰ ἐπλατύνθησαν πάλιν Κορίνθιοι καὶ στενοχωρούμενοι, οὐκ ἄλλοι ἐτύγχανον, ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἦσαν Κορίνθιοι, οὕτως εἰ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐπλατύνθη εἰς τριάδα, ἡ τριὰς πάλιν ἐστὶν ὁ Πατὴρ μόνος. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὲ πάλιν Φησὶν, ‘ἡ καρδία ἡμῶν πεπλάτυνται·᾿ καὶ ὁ Νῶε λέγει, ‘Πλατύναι ὁ Θεὸς τῷ Ἰάφεθ· ᾿ ἡ αὐτὴ γὰρ καρδία καὶ ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰάφεθ ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ πλατυσμῷ. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἡ μονὰς ἐπλάτυνεν, ἄλλοις ἂν ἐπλάτυνεν· εἰ δὲ αὐτὴ ἐπλάτυνεν, αὐτὴ ἂν εἴη, ὅπερ ἐπλατύνθη· τί δέ ἐστιν ἢ ὁ Υἱὸς καὶ Πνεῦμα ἅγιον; Ἐρέσθαι δὲ αὐτὸν τοιαῦτα λέγοντα, καλόν· Τίς ἡ ἐνέργεια τοῦ τοιούτου πλατυσμοῦ; ἢ, ὡς ἐπʼ αὐτῆς ἀληθείας, διὰ τί ὅλως ἐπλατύνθη; τὸ γὰρ μὴ μένον τὸ αὐτὸ, ἀλλʼ ὕστερον πλατυνόμενον, ἔχειν ἀνάγκῃ δεῖ τὴν αἰτίαν, διʼ ἣν καὶ ἐπλατύνθη. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἵνα Λόγος καὶ Πνεῦμα συνῇ αὐτῷ, περιττὸν τὸ λέγειν, ‘μονὰς, ʼ εἶτα, ‘ἐπλατύνθη·’ οὐ γὰρ ὕστερον Λόγος καὶ Πνεῦμα, ἀλλʼ ἀεὶ, ἵνα μὴ ἄλογος ὁ Θεὸς κατὰ τοὺς Ἀρειανούς. Ὥστε, εἰ ἀεὶ ἦν Λόγος καὶ Πνεῦμα, ἀεὶ πλατεῖα, καὶ οὐ πρῶτον μονάς. Εἰ δὲ ὕστερον ἐπλατύνθη, ὕστερον καὶ Λόγος. Εἰ δὲ διὰ τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν ἐπλατύνθη, καὶ γέγονε τότε τριὰς, ἄρα πρὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως οὔπω ἦν τριάς. Φανήσεται δὲ ὁ Πατὴρ καὶ γεγονὼς σὰρξ, ʼ εἴγε αὐτὸς, μονὰς ὢν, ἐν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ἐπλατύνθη· καὶ τάχα λοιπὸν μονὰς ἔσται, καὶ σὰρξ, καὶ, τὸ τρίτον, Πνεῦμα, εἴγε αὐτὸς ἐπλατύνθη· ἔσται δὲ καὶ ὀνόματι μόνον τριάς. Εἰ δὲ διὰ τὸ κτίσαι ἐπλατύνθη, ἄτοπον· δυνατὸν γὰρ ἦν, καὶ μονάδα μένουσαν αὐτὴν, πάντα ποιεῖν· οὐ γὰρ ἐνδεὴς ἦν πλατυσμοῦ ἡ μονὰς, οὐδὲ ἀσθενὴς ἦν πρὸ τοῦ πλατυνθῆναι. Ἄτοπον γὰρ καὶ ἀσεβὲς τοῦτό γε ἐπὶ Θεοῦ νοεῖν καὶ λέγειν. Ἀκολουθήσει δὲ καὶ ἄλλο ἄτοπον, εἰ γὰρ διὰ τὴν κτίσιν ἐπλατύνθη, ἕως δὲ μονὰς ἦν, οὐκ ἦν ἡ κτίσις, πάλιν δὲ ἔσται μετὰ τὴν συντέλειαν μονὰς ἀπὸ πλατυσμοῦ, ἀναιρεθήσεται καὶ ἡ κτίσις. Ὥσπερ γὰρ διὰ τὸ κτίσαι ἐπλατύνθη, οὕτως παυομένου τοῦ πλατυσμοῦ παύσεται καὶ ἡ κτίσις. ### English translation (Claude) 14. The divine apostle knows this too, writing to the Corinthians, “Do not be narrowed in us; be broadened, you too, Corinthians.” For he advises the same people to change from narrowness to breadth. And just as, if the Corinthians, having been narrowed, were broadened again, they would not become other people but would still be Corinthians, so if the Father was broadened into a trinity, the trinity is again the Father alone. And he says the same again: “Our heart has been broadened”; and Noah says, “May God broaden Japheth”; for the heart is the same, and Japheth is the same, in the broadening. If, then, the unity broadened, it would broaden for others; but if it broadened itself, it would itself be what was broadened. And what is that but the Son and the Holy Spirit? It is good to ask one who says such things: What is the activity of this broadening? Or, in plain truth, why was it broadened at all? For what does not remain the same, but is broadened later, must necessarily have a cause for which it was broadened. If, then, it was so that Word and Spirit might be with him, it is superfluous to say “a unity, and then it was broadened”; for Word and Spirit did not exist later, but always, so that God may not be without Word, as the Arians say. So if Word and Spirit always existed, it was always broad, and not first a unity. And if it was broadened later, the Word too is later. And if it was broadened because of the incarnation, and became a trinity then, then before the incarnation there was not yet a trinity. And the Father will appear to have “become flesh,” if he himself, being the unity, was broadened in the man; and perhaps there will then be a unity, and flesh, and third, Spirit, if indeed he himself was broadened; and it will be a trinity in name only. And if it was broadened in order to create, that is absurd; for it was possible for it to make everything while remaining a unity. For the unity did not need broadening, nor was it weak before being broadened. It is absurd and impious to think or say this of God. And another absurdity will follow. For if it was broadened for the sake of creation, and while it was a unity there was no creation, but after the consummation it will again be a unity after broadening, creation too will be destroyed. For just as it was broadened in order to create, so when the broadening ceases, creation too will cease. ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 6:12: quotation, high confidence - 2 Cor 6:13: quotation, high confidence - 2 Cor 6:11: quotation, high confidence - Gen 9:27: quotation, high confidence - John 1:14: allusion, medium confidence ### Translation notes - The Pauline texts are 2 Cor 6:11–13; “May God broaden Japheth” is Gen 9:27 (LXX), usually rendered “enlarge.” ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 14 (Bright, 231–232; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/1/#p-14). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 15 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-15 - Source: Bright, 232–233 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author reports three views that separate the Word from the Son and argues that the Word, being from God, must always be the Son of the Father. ### Greek text 15. Τοιαῦτα μὲν οὖν ἄτοπα ἐκ τοῦ ‘πλατύνεσθαιʼ λέγειν εἰς τριάδα τὴν μονάδα ἀπαντήσει. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ οἱ τοῦτο λέγοντες τολμῶσι διαιρεῖν Λόγον καὶ Υἱὸν, καὶ λέγειν ἄλλον μὲν εἶναι τὸν Λόγον, ἕτερον δὲ τὸν Υἱὸν, καὶ πρότερον μὲν εἶναι τὸν Λόγον, εἶτα τὸν Υἱόν· φέρε, καὶ περὶ τούτων ἴδωμεν. Ἔστι δὲ τούτων διάφορος ἡ τόλμα. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὃν ἀνέλαβεν ὁ Σωτὴρ, αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν Υἱὸν λέγουσιν· οἱ δὲ τὸ συναμφότερον, τόν τε ἄνθρωπον καὶ τὸν Λόγον, Υἱὸν τότε γεγενῆσθαι, ὅτε συνήφθησαν· ἄλλοι δέ εἰσιν οἱ λέγοντες, αὐτὸν τὸν Λόγον τότε Υἱὸν γεγενῆσθαι, ὅτε ἐνηνθρώπησεν· ‘Ἀπὸ γὰρ Λόγου, ’ φασὶ, ‘γέγονεν Υἱὸς, οὐκ ὢν πρότερον Υἱὸς, ἀλλὰ Λόγος μόνον.’ Στωϊκὰ μὲν οὖν ἀμφότερα, τό τε πλατύνεσθαι λέγειν τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ ἀρνεῖσθαι τὸν Υἱόν. Κατὰ περιττὸν δὲ ἀνόητον, ὅτι, ὀνομάζοντες ‘Λόγον, ʼ ἀρνοῦνται αὐτὸν Υἱὸν εἶναι. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ Λόγος, εἰκότως ἂν αὐτὸν ἀρνοῖντο εἶναι Υἱόν· εἰ δὲ ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστι διὰ τί μὴ συνορῶσιν ὅτι τὸ ἔκ τινος ὑπάρχον ‘υἱόςʼ ἐστιν ἐκείνου, ἐξ οὗ καὶ ἔστιν; Εἶτα εἰ τοῦ Λόγου Πατήρ ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς, διὰ τί μὴ καὶ ὁ Λόγος Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη τοῦ ἑαυτοῦ Πατρός; ‘πατὴρʼ γὰρ τίς ἐστι καὶ λέγεται, οὗ ἐστιν ὁ υἱός· καὶ ‘υἱόςʼ τίς ἐστι καὶ λέγεται ἐκείνου, οὗ ἐστιν ὁ πατήρ. Εἰ τοίνυν τοῦ Χριστοῦ οὐκ ἔστι Πατὴρ ὁ Θεὸς, οὐδὲ ὁ Λόγος Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη· εἰ δὲ Πατὴρ ὁ Θεὸς, εἰκότως ἂν εἴη καὶ ὁ Λόγος Υἱός. Εἰ δὲ ὕστερον μὲν Πατὴρ καὶ πρῶτον Θεὸς, Ἀρειανῶν μὲν τὸ φρόνημα· ἔπειτα, ἄτοπον μεταβάλλεσθαι τὸν Θεόν, σωματικὸν γάρ· εἰ δὲ ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τῆς κτίσεως ὕστερον ποιητὴς, ἰστέον, ὅτι τῶν γινομένων ὕστερόν ἐστιν ἡ μεταβολὴ, οὐχὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ. ### English translation (Claude) 15. Such absurdities, then, confront those who say that the unity “was broadened” into a trinity. But since those who say this dare to divide Word and Son, and to say that the Word is one and the Son another, and that the Word came first and then the Son, come, let us look at these points too. Their daring takes different forms. Some say that the man whom the Savior assumed is himself the Son; others that both together, the man and the Word, became Son when they were joined; and there are others who say that the Word himself became Son when he became man: “For from being Word,” they say, “he became Son, not having been Son before but only Word.” Both are Stoic ideas: to say that God is broadened, and to deny the Son. But it is especially senseless to name him “Word” and deny that he is Son. For if the Word is not from God, they might reasonably deny that he is Son; but if he is from God, why do they not see that what exists from someone is the “son” of the one from whom it is? Then, if God is Father of the Word, why would the Word not be Son of his own Father? For one is and is called “father” whose son there is; and one is and is called “son” of him whose father he is. So if God is not Father of Christ, neither would the Word be Son; but if God is Father, the Word would naturally be Son too. And if he is later Father and first God, this is the mind of the Arians; and then it is absurd for God to change, for that belongs to bodies. And if they argue that, as in the case of creation, he became maker later, one must know that the change belongs to the things that came to be later, not to God. ### Translation notes - The three views reported (the assumed man is the Son; Word and man together became Son; the Word became Son at the incarnation) are associated with Marcellus of Ancyra, his disciple Photinus, and their followers; the attribution of each is uncertain. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 15 (Bright, 232–233; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-15). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 16 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-16 - Source: Bright, 233–234 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that if the Word and the Son were different, the Son, who alone is in the Father's bosom and knows the Father, would be greater than the Word; and John 10 shows that the Son speaks of oneness with the Father. ### Greek text 16. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ποίημα καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς, καλῶς ἂν ὕστερον Πατὴρ καὶ ἐπʼαὐτοῦ· εἰ δὲ οὐ ποίημα ὁ Υἱὸς, ἀεὶ ἄρα ὁ Πατὴρ, ἀεὶ καὶ ὁ Υἱός. Εἰ δὲ ἀεὶ ὁ Υἱὸς, αὐτὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ λόγος. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ Υἱὸς εἴη ὁ Λόγος, καὶ τοῦτό τις ἀποτολμῶν εἴποι, ἢ τὸν Λόγον ‘Πατέραʼ λέγει, ἢ τὸν Υἱὸν κρείττονα τοῦ λόγου. Τοῦ γὰρ Υἱοῦ ‘ἐν κόλποις ὄντος τοῦ Πατρὸς, ’ ἀνάγκη ἢ μὴ εἶναι πρὸ Υἱοῦ τὸν Λόγον· οὐδὲν γάρ ἐστι πρὸ τοῦ ὄντος ἐν τῷ Πατρί· ἢ εἰ ὁ Λόγος ἄλλος ἐστὶ παρὰ τὸν Υἱὸν, ὁ Λόγος ἂν εἴη ὁ Πατὴρ, ἐν ᾧ ἐστιν ὁ Υἱός. Εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ Λόγος Πατὴρ, ἀλλὰ λόγος, ἐκτὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Πατρὸς, ὄντος τοῦ Υἱοῦ ἐν τοῖς κόλποις τοῦ Πατρός. Οὐ γὰρ ἀμφότερα, ὅ τε Λόγος καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς, ἐν τοῖς κόλποις, ἀλλʼ ἕνα εἶναι δεῖ, καὶ τοῦτον τὸν Υἱὸν, ὅς ἐστι μονογενής. Καὶ πάλιν, εἰ ἄλλος ἐστὶν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ἄλλος ὁ Υἱὸς, κρείττων εὑρεθήσεται ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Λόγου· ‘οὐδεὶς γὰρ γινώσκει τὸν Πατέρα, εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱὸς, ’ οὐχ ‘ὁ Λόγος.’ Ἢ τοίνυν οὐκ οἶδεν ὁ Λόγος, ἢ εἰ οἶδε, ψεῦδος τὸ ‘οὐδεὶς γινώσκει. Τὸ αὐτὸ δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ ‘ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ, ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν Υἱοῦ γάρ εἰσι φωναὶ, καὶ οὐ Λόγου κατʼ αὐτούς· δῆλον δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν εὐαγγελίων. Κατὰ γὰρ τὸν Ἰωάννην, λέγοντος τοῦ Κυρίου, ‘Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν, ἐβάστασαν λίθους οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, ἵνα λιθάσωσιν αὐτόν. Ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Πολλὰ ἔργα καλὰ ἔδειξα ὑμῖν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός· διὰ ποῖον αὐτῶν ἔργον ἐμὲ λιθάζετε; Ἀπεκρίθησαν αὐτῷ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι· Περὶ καλοῦ ἔργου οὐ λιθάζομέν σε, ἀλλὰ περὶ βλασφημίας, καὶ ὅτι σὺ, ἄνθρωπος ὢν, ποιεῖς σεαυτὸν Θεόν· Ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Οὐκ ἔστι γεγραμμένον ἐν τῷ νόμῳ ὑμῶν, ὅτι ‘‘ἐγὼ εἶπα, θεοί ἐστε; ᾿᾿ εἰ ἐκείνους εἶπε θεοὺς, πρὸς οὓς ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐγένετο, καὶ οὐ δύναται λυθῆναι ἡ γραφὴ, ὃν ὁ Πατὴρ ἡγίασε καὶ ἀπέστειλεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, ὑμεῖς λέγετε, ὅτι “βλασφημεῖς, ” ὅτι εἶπον, Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰμι; εἰ οὐ ποιῶ τὰ ἔργα τοῦ Πατρὸς, μὴ πιστεύετέ μοι· εἰ δὲ ποιῶ, κἂν ἐμοὶ μὴ πιστεύητε, τοῖς ἔργοις πιστεύσατε, ἵνα γνῶτε καὶ γινώσκητε ὅτι ἐν ἐμοὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, κἀγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρί·’ Καίτοι, ὅσον ἐκ τοῦ προφανοῦς δεῖ νοεῖν, οὔθʼ ὅτι ‘Θεός εἰμι, ’ οὐδʼ ὅτι ‘Υἱὸς Θεοῦ εἰμι, ᾿ εἶπεν, ἀλλʼ, ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 16. If, then, the Son too were a work, the Father might well be Father later in his case too; but if the Son is not a work, then the Father always was, and the Son always was. And if the Son always was, he would be the Word himself. For if the Word were not Son, and someone were bold enough to say this, he would call either the Word “Father,” or the Son better than the Word. For since the Son “is in the bosom of the Father,” necessarily either the Word is not before the Son (for nothing is before the one who is in the Father), or, if the Word is other than the Son, the Word would be the Father, in whom the Son is. But if the Word is not Father but word, the Word would be outside the Father, since it is the Son who is in the bosom of the Father. For not both, the Word and the Son, are in the bosom; there must be one, and that is the Son, who is only-begotten. And again, if the Word is one and the Son another, the Son will be found better than the Word; for “no one knows the Father except the Son,” not “the Word.” So either the Word does not know, or, if he knows, “no one knows” is false. The same holds of “He who has seen me has seen the Father,” and, “I and the Father are one”; for these are the words of the Son, and not of the Word, according to them. And this is clear from the Gospels. For according to John, when the Lord said, “I and the Father are one,” the Jews “took up stones to stone him. Jesus answered them, ‘I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of these works are you stoning me?’ The Jews answered him, ‘We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy, and because you, being a man, make yourself God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Is it not written in your law, I said, you are gods? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came, and Scripture cannot be broken, do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, You are blaspheming, because I said, I am the Son of God? If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me; but if I do them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.’” Yet, as far as the surface of the words goes, he said neither “I am God” nor “I am the Son of God,” but, “I and the Father are one.” ### Scripture references - John 1:18: quotation, high confidence - Matt 11:27: quotation, high confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 10:31: quotation, high confidence - John 10:32: quotation, high confidence - John 10:33: quotation, high confidence - John 10:34: quotation, high confidence - John 10:35: quotation, high confidence - John 10:36: quotation, high confidence - John 10:37: quotation, high confidence - John 10:38: quotation, high confidence - Ps 82:6 (81:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 16 (Bright, 233–234; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-16). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 17 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-17 - Source: Bright, 234–235 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author explains that in John 10:30–38 Jesus refutes both Sabellius and Arius, and that the sayings of unity with the Father are spoken by the Son. ### Greek text 17. Οἱ μὲν οὖν Ἰουδαῖοι ἐν τῷ ἀκοῦσαι ‘ἓνʼ ἐνόμιζον κατὰ Σαβέλλιον αὐτὸν εἰρηκέναι εἶναι τὸν Πατέρα· ὁ δέ γε Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν συλλογίζεται μὲν αὐτῶν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ὅτι ‘εἰ καὶ Θεὸν εἶπον, ἔδει ὑμᾶς εἰδέναι τὸ γεγραμμένον, Ἐγὼ εἶπα, θεοί ἐστε·᾿ εἶτα τὸ ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμενʼ σαφηνίζων, ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ τὴν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα ἑνότητα ἀποδέδωκε λέγων, ‘ὅτι εἶπον, Υἱός εἰμι τοῦ Θεοῦ.᾿ Εἰ γὰρ τῇ λέξει οὐκ εἶπεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν διάνοιαν τοῦ ‘ἕν ἐσμεν ἀποδέδωκε τῷ Υἱῷ. Οὐδὲν γὰρ ἓν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, εἰ μὴ τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ. Τί δʼ ἂν εἴη τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἢ ὁ Υἱός; Ἐπιφέρει γοῦν, ‘ἵνα γινώσκητε ὅτι ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί.’ Τὸ γὰρ ‘ἓνʼ ἐπεξηγούμενος, οὐκ ἐν τῷ αὐτὸ εἶναι ἐκεῖνο πρὸς ὃ ἕν ἐστιν εἶπεν, ἀλλʼ ἐν τῷ αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ τὸν Πατέρα ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ, τὴν συνάφειαν καὶ τὸ ἀχώριστον. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ Σαβέλλιον ἐν τούτῳ ἀνατρέπει, ἐν τῷ εἰπεῖν οὐχ, ‘ὁ Πατήρ εἰμι, ᾿ ἀλλὰ, ‘ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ·᾿ καὶ Ἄρειον ἐν τῷ εἰπεῖν, ‘ἕν ἐσμεν.᾿ Εἰ τοίνυν ὁ Υἱὸς ἄλλο, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἄλλο, οὐχ ὁ Λόγος ἕν ἐστι πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, ἀλλʼ ὁ Υἱός· οὐδὲ ὁ τὸν Λόγον ‘ἑωρακὼς ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα, ʼ ἀλλʼ ὁ τὸν Υἱόν. Τούτων δὲ δεικνυμένων, ἢ μείζων ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Λόγου, ἢ πλεῖον οὐδὲν ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Υἱοῦ ἔχει. Τί γὰρ μεῖζον ἢ τελειότερον τοῦ ‘ἓν, ʼ καὶ τοῦ ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοὶ, ᾿ καὶ τοῦ ‘ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα;’ Καὶ γὰρ καὶ αὗται αἱ φωναὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ εἰσι. Φησὶ γοῦν ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰωάννης, ‘Ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν πέμψαντά με·᾿ καὶ, ‘ὁ ἐμὲ δεχόμενος, δέχεται τὸν ἀποστείλαντά με· ʼ καὶ ‘ἐγὼ φῶς εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἐλήλυθα, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ μὴ μείνῃ·᾿ καὶ, ‘Ἐάν τίς μου ἀκούσῃ τῶν λόγων, καὶ μὴ φυλάξῃ, ἐγὼ οὐ κρίνω αὐτόν· οὐ γὰρ ἦλθον ἵνα κρίνω τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλʼ ἵνα σώσω τὸν κόσμον. Ὁ λόγος δὲ ὃν ἀκούει, ἐκεῖνος κρινεῖ αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ· ὅτι ἐγὼ πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα πορεύομαι.᾿ Τὸ κήρυγμα δέ φησι κρίνειν τὸν μὴ φυλάξαντα τὴν ἐντολήν. ‘Εἰ γάρ, ʼ φησι, ‘μὴ ἦλθον καὶ ἐλάλησα αὐτοῖς, ἁμαρτίαν οὐκ εἶχον· νῦν δὲ πρόφασιν οὐχ ἕξουσι, φησὶ, ἀκηκοότες μοῦ τῶν ῥημάτων, διʼ ὧν σωτηρίαν καρπίζονται οἱ φυλάσσοντες. ʼ ### English translation (Claude) 17. So the Jews, when they heard “one,” thought that he had said, as Sabellius would, that he was the Father. But our Savior points out their sin by reasoning that, “even if I had said God, you ought to have known what is written, I said, you are gods”; then, explaining “I and the Father are one,” he gave the Son's unity with the Father, saying, “because I said, I am the Son of God.” For even if he did not say it in so many words, he applied the meaning of “we are one” to the Son. For nothing is one with the Father except what is from him; and what would be from him but the Son? So he adds, “so that you may know that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.” For explaining “one,” he did not say that he is the very thing with which he is one, but that the union and inseparability lie in his being in the Father and the Father in the Son. For in this he overturns Sabellius, by saying not “I am the Father” but “the Son of God,” and Arius, by saying “we are one.” If, then, the Son is one thing and the Word another, it is not the Word who is one with the Father, but the Son; nor is it he who “has seen” the Word who “has seen the Father,” but he who has seen the Son. And when this is shown, either the Son is greater than the Word, or the Word has nothing more than the Son. For what is greater or more complete than “one,” and “I am in the Father and the Father in me,” and “He who has seen me has seen the Father”? For these too are the words of the Son. So the same John says, “He who has seen me has seen him who sent me,” and, “He who receives me receives him who sent me,” and, “I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me may not remain in darkness”; and, “If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The word that he hears will judge him on the last day, because I am going to the Father.” He says that the preaching judges the one who has not kept the commandment. “For if,” he says, “I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they will have no excuse,” he says, having heard my words, through which those who keep them reap salvation. ### Scripture references - John 10:34: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 10:36: quotation, high confidence - John 10:38: quotation, high confidence - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - John 12:45: quotation, high confidence - John 13:20: quotation, high confidence - John 12:46: quotation, high confidence - John 12:47: quotation, high confidence - John 12:48: quotation, high confidence - John 14:12: allusion, medium confidence - John 15:22: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The Johannine quotations are loosely combined (John 12:44–48, 13:20, 15:22), and “because I am going to the Father” is attached from John 14:12, as in the manuscript text. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 17 (Bright, 234–235; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-17). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 18 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-18 - Source: Bright, 235–236 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author shows from John 3:16–19 and John 12 that the one who came to save the world and who is the light is the only-begotten Son. ### Greek text 18. Ἴσως μὲν οὖν ἂν εἴποιεν ἀναιδῶς, μὴ Υἱοῦ, ἀλλὰ Λόγου εἶναι τὴν φωνὴν ταύτην. Ἀλλʼ ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτέρω λεχθεῖσι δῆλον ἐγένετο ὅτι Υἱός ἐστιν ὁ λέγων. Ὁ γὰρ λέγων ἐνταῦθα, ‘οὐκ ἦλθον κρῖναι τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλὰ σῶσαι, ᾿ δείκνυται οὐκ ἄλλος εἶναι ἢ ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ. Φησὶ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰωάννης, ‘Οὕτω γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν Υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων ἐπʼ αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλʼ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον. Οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστειλεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν Υἱὸν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, ἵνα κρίνῃ τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλʼ ἴνα σωθῇ ὁ κόσμος διʼ αὐτοῦ, Ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν οὐ κρίνεται· ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων ἤδη κέκριται, ὅτι μὴ πεπίστευκεν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ κρίσις, ὅτι τὸ φῶς ἐλήλυθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, καὶ ἠγάπησαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι μᾶλλον τὸ σκότος ἢ τὸ φῶς· ἦν γὰρ αὐτῶν πονηρὰ τὰ ἔργα.᾿ Εἰ ὁ λέγων, ‘οὐ γὰρ ἦλθον, ἵνα κρίνω τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλʼ ἵνα σώσω αὐτὸν, ʼ αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ λέγων, ‘ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμὲ, θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμψαντά με·᾿ ὁ δὲ ἐλθὼν σῶσαι τὸν κόσμον, καὶ μὴ κρῖναι αὐτὸν, ὁ μονογενής ἐστιν Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ· δῆλον ὅτι ὁ αὐτὸς Υἱός ἐστιν ὁ λέγων, ‘ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμὲ, θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμψαντά με.᾿ Καὶ γὰρ ὁ λέγων, ‘ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ, ’ καὶ, ‘ἐάν τίς μου ἀκούσῃ τῶν ῥημάτων, ἐγὼ οὐ κρίνω αὐτὸν, ᾿ αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ Υἱὸς, περὶ οὗ ταῦτά φησιν, ‘ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν οὐ κρίνεται· ὁ δὲ μὴ πιστεύων ἤδη κέκριται, ὅτι μὴ πεπίστευκεν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ μονογενοῦς Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ.᾿ Καὶ πάλιν, ‘καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ κρίσις τοῦ μὴ πιστεύοντος εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν, ὅτι τὸ φῶς ἐλήλυθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, ʼ καὶ οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν αὐτῷ, δηλονότι τῷ Υἱῷ· αὐτὸς γὰρ ἂν εἴη ‘τὸ φῶς τὸ φωτίζον πάντα ἄνθρωπον τὸν ἐρχόμενον εἰς τὸν κόσμον· καὶ ὅσον χρόνον ἐπὶ γῆς ὑπῆρχε κατὰ τὴν ἐνανθρώπησιν, φῶς εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἦν, ὡς ἔφη αὐτός· ‘ἕως τὸ φῶς ἔχετε, πιστεύετε εἰς τὸ φῶς, ἵνα υἱοὶ φωτὸς γένησθε· ἐγὼ γὰρ φῶς, ᾿ φησὶν, ‘εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἐλήλυθα.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 18. Perhaps they will shamelessly say that this saying belongs not to the Son but to the Word. But from what was said above it became clear that the speaker is the Son. For the one who says here, “I did not come to judge the world but to save it,” is shown to be no other than the only-begotten Son of God. For the same John says earlier, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not judged; but whoever does not believe has already been judged, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment: that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, for their works were evil.” If the one who says, “For I did not come to judge the world but to save it,” is the one who says, “He who sees me sees him who sent me,” and the one who came to save the world and not to judge it is the only-begotten Son of God, it is clear that it is the same Son who says, “He who sees me sees him who sent me.” For the one who says, “He who believes in me,” and, “If anyone hears my words, I do not judge him,” is himself the Son, about whom it says, “Whoever believes in him is not judged; but whoever does not believe has already been judged, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.” And again, “And this is the judgment” of the one who does not believe in the Son, “that the light has come into the world,” and they did not believe in him, that is, in the Son. For he would be “the light that enlightens every man coming into the world.” And as long as he was on earth in his incarnation, he was light in the world, as he himself said, “While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become sons of light; for I,” he says, “have come as light into the world.” ### Scripture references - John 12:47: quotation, high confidence - John 3:16: quotation, high confidence - John 3:17: quotation, high confidence - John 3:18: quotation, high confidence - John 3:19: quotation, high confidence - John 12:45: quotation, high confidence - John 12:44: allusion, high confidence - John 1:9: quotation, high confidence - John 12:36: quotation, high confidence - John 12:46: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 18 (Bright, 235–236; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-18). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 19 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-19 - Source: Bright, 236–237 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues from John 1 and John 14 that the world was made through the Son as through the Word, so the Son and the Word are one and the same, existing before the world. ### Greek text 19. Καὶ τούτου τοίνυν δειχθέντος, δῆλον ὅτι Υἱός ἐστιν ὁ Λόγος. Εἰ δὲ ὁ Υἱός ἐστι τὸ φῶς τὸ εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἐληλυθὸς, ἀναντιῤῥήτως διὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ ὁ κόσμος ἐγένετο. Ἐν γὰρ τῇ ἀρχῇ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου περὶ τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ λέγων Ἰωάννου ὁ εὐαγγελιστής φησιν, ‘οὐκ ἦν ἐκεῖνος τὸ φῶς, ἀλλʼ ἵνα μαρτυρήσῃ περὶ τοῦ φωτός·᾿ Ἦν γὰρ, ὡς προέφημεν, ‘τὸ φῶςʼ αὐτὸς ὁ Χριστὸς ‘τὸ ἀληθινὸν, τὸ φωτίζον πάντα ἄνθρωπον τὸν ἐρχόμενον εἰς τὸν κόσμον.’ Εἰ γὰρ ‘ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ἦν, καὶ ὁ κόσμος διʼ αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο, ’ ἀνάγκη οὖν αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν Λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ, περὶ οὗ καὶ πάντα διʼ αὐτοῦ γεγενῆσθαι ἔφησεν. Ἢ γὰρ δύο κόσμους ἀναγκασθήσονται λέγειν, ἵνʼ ὁ μὲν διʼ Υἱοῦ, ὁ δὲ διὰ τοῦ Λόγου εἴη γεγονώς· ἢ, εἰ εἷς ἐστιν ὁ κόσμος καὶ μία ἡ κτίσις, ἀκόλουθον καὶ ἕνα καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν Υἱὸν καὶ Λόγον πρὸ πάσης κτίσεως· διʼ αὐτοῦ γὰρ γέγονεν. Οὐκοῦν εἰ ὡς διὰ τοῦ Λόγου, οὕτω καὶ διὰ Υἱοῦ τὰ πάντα γέγονεν, οὐδὲν ἐναντίον φανήσεται, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταὐτὸν εἴη ἂν εἰπεῖν, ὡς ‘ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, ʼ ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Υἱός. Εἰ δὲ, ὅτι μὴ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰωάννης, ‘ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Υἱὸς, ᾿ οὐχ ἁρμόζειν φήσουσι τῷ Υἱῷ τὰ τοῦ Λόγου, ὥρα καὶ τὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ μὴ ἁρμόζειν τῷ Λόγῳ. Τοῦ δὲ Υἱοῦ ἐδείχθη τὸ ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν, ʼ καὶ τὸ, ‘ὁ ὢν ἐν τοῖς κόλποις τοῦ Πατρὸς, ᾿ ὑπάρχειν αὐτόν· καὶ τὸ, ‘ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμὲ, θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμψαντά με· ʼ κοινὸν μέντοι πρός τε τὸν Λόγον καὶ τὸν Υἱὸν τὸ τὸν κόσμον διʼ αὐτοῦ γεγενῆσθαι· ὡς ἐκ τούτου δείκνυσθαι πρὸ τοῦ κόσμου εἶναι τὸν Υἱόν. Ἀνάγκη γὰρ τὸν δημιουργὸν πρὸ τῶν γιγνομένων εἶναι. Καὶ τὸ πρὸς Φίλιππον δὲ λεγόμενον οὐ τοῦ Λόγου κατʼ αὐτοὺς ἂν εἴη, ἀλλὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ. Εἶπε γὰρ, φησὶν, ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ‘Τοσοῦτον χρόνον μεθʼ ὑμῶν εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με, Φίλιππε; ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα· καὶ πῶς σὺ λέγεις, Δεῖξον ἡμῖν τὸν Πατέρα; οὐ πιστεύεις, ὅτι ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί ἐστι; τὰ ῥήματα, ἃ ἐγὼ λαλῷ ὑμῖν, ἀπʼ ἐμαυτοῦ οὐ λαλῶ· ὁ δὲ Πατὴρ, ὁ ἐν ἐμοὶ μένων, αὐτὸς ποιεῖ τὰ ἔργα. Πιστεύετέ μοι, ὅτι ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοὶ, εἰ δὲ μὴ, διὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτὰ πιστεύετέ μοι. Ἀμὴν, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν, ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ, τὰ ἔργα, ἃ ἐγὼ ποιῶ, κἀκεῖνος ποιήσει, καὶ μείζονα τούτων ποιήσει, ὅτι ἔγω πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα πορεύομαι. Καὶ ὅ τι ἂν αἰτήσητε ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου, τοῦτο ποιήσω, ἵνα δοξασθῇ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ.᾿ Οὐκοῦν εἰ ὁ Πατὴρ δοξάζεται ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ, ὁ Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ λέγων, ‘ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί·᾿ αὐτὸς καὶ τὸ, ‘ὁ ἐμὲ ἑωρακὼς, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ ταῦτα λέγων Υἱὸν ἑαυτὸν δείκνυσιν ἐπάγων, ‘ἵνα δοξασθῇ ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 19. Since this has been shown, then, it is clear that the Word is the Son. And if the Son is the light that has come into the world, then beyond dispute the world came to be through the Son. For at the beginning of the Gospel, the evangelist, speaking about John the Baptist, says, “He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.” For, as we said before, Christ himself was “the true light, which enlightens every man coming into the world.” For if “he was in the world, and the world came to be through him,” then he must be the Word of God, of whom he also said that all things came to be through him. For either they will be forced to speak of two worlds, one made through the Son and the other through the Word; or, if the world is one and the creation one, it follows that the Son and the Word before all creation are one and the same, for it came to be through him. So if all things came to be through the Son as through the Word, nothing contrary will appear; indeed it would be the same to say, as “in the beginning was the Word,” that in the beginning was the Son. And if, because John did not say “in the beginning was the Son,” they say that what belongs to the Word does not fit the Son, it is time for what belongs to the Son not to fit the Word either. But it has been shown that “I and the Father are one” belongs to the Son, and his being the one “who is in the bosom of the Father,” and “He who sees me sees him who sent me”; while it is common to the Word and the Son that the world came to be through him. From this it is shown that the Son exists before the world; for the maker must exist before the things that come to be. And what is said to Philip would not, according to them, belong to the Word but to the Son. For Jesus said, it says: “Have I been with you so long, and you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does the works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or else believe me because of the works themselves. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do, and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. And whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” So if the Father is glorified in the Son, the one who says, “I am in the Father and the Father is in me,” would be the Son; and so too, “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” For the very one who says these things shows himself to be the Son by adding, “so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” ### Scripture references - John 1:8: quotation, high confidence - John 1:9: quotation, high confidence - John 1:10: quotation, high confidence - John 1:3: allusion, high confidence - John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: quotation, high confidence - John 12:45: quotation, high confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence - John 14:11: quotation, high confidence - John 14:12: quotation, high confidence - John 14:13: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 19 (Bright, 236–237; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-19). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 20 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-20 - Source: Bright, 237–238 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author refutes the view that the man Jesus, not the Word, is the Son, showing that the Son existed before Abraham and made the world. ### Greek text 20. Eἰ μὲν οὖν τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὃν ἐφόρεσεν ὁ Λόγος, αὐτὸν εἶναι λέγουσι τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ, καὶ μὴ τὸν Λόγον Υἱὸν, ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἂν εἴη ἀκολούθως ὁ ‘ἐν τῷ Πατρὶ, ʼ ἐν ᾧ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ‘ἐν αὐτῷ·’ καὶ ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἂν εἴη, ὁ ‘ἓνʼ ὢν αὐτὸς καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, καὶ ‘ὁ ἐν τοῖς κόλποις τοῦ Πατρὸς, καὶ ‘τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινόν· Ἀναγκασθήσονται δὲ καὶ ‘διʼ αὐτοῦʼ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εἰπεῖν τὸν κόσμον γεγενῆσθαι, καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον εἶναι τὸν ‘ἐλθόντα μὴ κρῖναι τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλὰ σῶσαιʼ αὐτόν· αὐτὸν δὲ εἶναι καὶ πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι. ‘Ἰησοῦςʼ γὰρ, φησὶν, ‘εἷπεν αὐτοῖς· Ἀμὴν, ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμίν, πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι, ἐγώ εἰμι.’ Καὶ πῶς οὐκ ἄτοπον κατʼ αὐτοὺς τὸν ἐκ σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ μετὰ δύο καὶ τεσσαράκοντα γενεὰς γενόμενον λέγειν, ‘πρὶνʼ Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι, ’ ὑπάρχειν; πῶς δὲ οὐκ ἄτοπον, εἰ ἡ σὰρξ, ἣν ἐφόρεσεν ὁ Λόγος, αὕτη ἐστὶν ὁ Υἱὸς, λέγειν τὴν ἐκ Μαρίας σάρκα ταύτην εἶναι, διʼ ἧς ὁ κόσμος ἐγένετο; πῶς δὲ φήσουσι καὶ τὸ ‘ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ἦν;’ τὸ γὰρ πρὸ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα γενέσεως τοῦ Υἱοῦ σημαίνων ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς, ἐπήγαγε λέγων, ‘ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ἦν.’ Πῶς δὲ εἰ μὴ ὁ Λόγος Υἱός ἐστιν, ἀλλʼ ὁ ἄνθρωπος Υἱὸς, δύναται τὸν κόσμον σῶσαι, εἶς ὢν καὶ αὐτὸς τοῦ κόσμου; Εἰ δὲ ἀναισχυντοῖεν ἐπὶ τούτοις, ποῦ ἔσται ὁ Λόγος, τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ὄντος ‘ἐν τῷ Πατρί; ʼ πόστος δὲ ἔσται ὁ Λόγος πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, τοῦ ἀνθρώπου καὶ τοῦ Πατρὸς ‘ἓνʼ ὄντων; Εἱ δὲ ὁ ἄνθρωπος μονογενής ἐστι, πόστος ἔσται ὁ Λόγος; Ἢ γὰρ δεύτερον εἶναι αὐτὸν λέξειέ τις· ἢ εἰ ὑπὲρ τὸ μονογενές ἐστιν, αὐτὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ Πατήρ. ὥσπερ γὰρ εἷς ἐστιν ὁ Πατὴρ, οὕτως ἓν καὶ τὸ ἐξ αὐτοῦ μονογενές. Τί δὲ καὶ πλέον ὁ Λόγος ἔχει τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, εἴ γε οὐχ ὁ Λόγος Υἱός ἐστι; Διὰ μὲν γὰρ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Λόγου ὁ κόσμου γεγενῆσθαι γέγραπται, καὶ κοινόν ἐστι τῷ τε Λόγῳ καὶ τῷ Υἱῷ τὸ δημιουργεῖν τὸν κόσμον· τὸ δὲ ὁρᾶν τὸν Πατέρα οὐκ ἔτι ἐν τῷ Λόγῳ γέγραπται, ἀλλʼ ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ· καὶ τὸ σώζειν τὸν κόσμον οὐκέτι διὰ τοῦ Λόγου ἐλέχθη, ἀλλὰ διὰ τοῦ μονογενοῦς Υἱοῦ, ‘Εἶπεʼ γὰρ, φησὶν, ‘ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Τοσοῦτον χρόνον μεθʼ ὑμῶν εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με, Φίλιππε; ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα.᾿ Καὶ τὸν Πατέρα δὲ οὐχ ὁ Λόγος γέγραπται γινώσκειν, ἀλλʼ ὁ Υἱός· ὁρᾷν δὲ τὸν Πατέρα οὐχ ὁ Λόγος εἴρηται, ἀλλʼ ‘ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς, ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ Πατρός.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 20. If, then, they say that the man whom the Word wore is himself the only-begotten Son of God, and not the Word, then consistently the man would be the one who is “in the Father,” in whom the Father too is “in him”; and the man would be the one who is “one” with the Father, and “who is in the bosom of the Father,” and “the true light.” They will be forced to say also that the world came to be “through” the man, and that the man is the one who “came not to judge the world but to save” it; and that he existed even before Abraham came to be. For “Jesus,” it says, “said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I am.” And how is it not absurd, on their view, to say that one who came from the seed of Abraham forty-two generations later existed “before” Abraham came to be? And how is it not absurd, if the flesh that the Word wore is the Son, to say that this flesh from Mary is that through which the world came to be? And how will they explain “he was in the world”? For the evangelist, signifying the Son's existence before his birth according to the flesh, went on to say, “he was in the world.” And if the Word is not the Son, but the man is the Son, how can he save the world, being himself one of the world? And if they are not ashamed at this, where will the Word be, when the man is “in the Father”? And in what rank will the Word stand in relation to the Father, when the man and the Father are “one”? And if the man is only-begotten, in what rank will the Word be? Either one will say that he is second, or, if he is above the only-begotten, he would be the Father himself. For just as the Father is one, so also the only-begotten from him is one. And what more has the Word than the man, if indeed the Word is not the Son? For it is written that the world came to be through the Son and through the Word, and creating the world is common to the Word and the Son; but seeing the Father is no longer written of the Word, but of the Son; and saving the world is no longer said to be through the Word, but through the only-begotten Son. “For Jesus said,” it says, “Have I been with you so long, and you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father.” And it is not written that the Word knows the Father, but the Son; and it is not said that the Word sees the Father, but “the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father.” ### Scripture references - John 14:10: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: quotation, high confidence - John 1:9: quotation, high confidence - John 1:10: quotation, high confidence - John 12:47: quotation, high confidence - John 8:58: quotation, high confidence - Matt 1:17: allusion, medium confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - Matt 11:27: allusion, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 20 (Bright, 237–238; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-20). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 21 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-21 - Source: Bright, 238–239 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues from the command to believe in the Son and from baptism into Father, Son, and Spirit that the Word is the Son, and refutes the view that Word and man together are the Son. ### Greek text 21. Τί δὲ πλέον εἰς σωτηρίαν ἡμῶν ὁ Λόγος συμβάλλεται μᾶλλον τοῦ Υἱοῦ, εἴ γε κατʼ αὐτοὺς ἄλλος ἐστὶν ὁ Υἱὸς, καὶ ἄλλος ὁ Λόγος; πιστεύειν γὰρ ἡμᾶς οὐκ εἰς τὸν Λόγον, ἀλλʼ εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν πρόσταξίς ἐστι· φησὶ γὰρ ὁ Ἰωάννης, ‘ Ὁ πιστεύων εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον· ὁ δὲ ἀπειθῶν τῷ Υἱῷ οὐκ ὄψεται ζωήν.᾿ Καὶ τὸ ἅγιον δὲ βάπτισμα, ἐν ᾦ πάσης πίστεως ἡμῶν ἡ σύστασις ὁρμεῖ, οὐκ ‘εἰς Λόγον.᾿ ἀλλʼ ‘εἰς Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν καὶ ἅγιον Πνεῦμαʼ δίδοται. Εἴπερ οὖν κατʼ αὐτοὺς ἄλλος ἐστὶν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ἄλλος ὁ Υἱὸς, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν Υἱὸς ὁ Λόγος, οὐδὲν πρὸς τὸν Λόγον τὸ βάπτισμα. Πῶς οὖν σύνεστιν ὁ Λόγος κατʼ αὐτοὺς τῷ Πατρὶ, οὐ συνὼν αὐτῷ ἐν τῇ τοῦ βαπτίσματος δόσει; Ἀλλʼ ἴσως ἂν εἴποιεν, ‘Ἐν τῷ τοῦ Πατρὸς ὀνόματι περιέχεται καὶ ὁ Λόγος. Διὰ τί οὖν οὐχὶ καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα; ἢ ἐκτὸς τοῦ Πατρὸς τὸ Πνεῦμα; καὶ ἄνθρωπος μὲν, εἴπερ οὐκ ἔστιν Υἱὸς ὁ Λόγος, μετὰ τὸν Πατέρα ὀνομάζεται, τὸ δὲ Πνεῦμα μετὰ τὸν ἄνθρωπον· οὐκ ἔτι δὲ οὐδὲ εἰς τριάδα κατʼ αὐτοὺς ἡ μονὰς πλατύνεται, ἀλλʼ εἰς τετράδα, Πατέρα, καὶ Λόγον, καὶ Υἱὸν, καὶ Πνεῦμα ἅγιον. Ἐν τούτοις δὴ αἰσχυνόμενοι, εἰς ἕτερον καταφεύγουσι, καί φασι ‘μὴ τὸν ἄνθρωπον καθʼ ἑαυτὸν, ὃν ἐφόρεσεν ὁ Κύριος, ἀλλὰ τὸ συναμφότερον, τόν τε Λόγον καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, εἶναι Υἱόν· συνημμένα γὰρ ἀμφότερα Υἱὸς “ὡς αὐτοὶ λέγουσιν, ” ὀνομάζεται.’ Τί τοίνυν τίνος αἴτιον, καὶ πότερος πότερον Υἱὸν κατεσκεύασεν; ἢ, ἴνα λευκότερον εἴποιμι, ἄρα διὰ τὴν σάρκα ὁ Λόγος Υἱὸς, ἢ διὰ τὸν Λόγον ἡ σὰρξ Υἱὸς λέγεται; ἢ οὐδʼ ὁπότερον τούτων, ἀλλʼ ἡ ἀμφοῖν σύνοδος; Εἰ μὲν οὖν ὁ Λόγος διὰ τὴν σάρκα, ἀνάγκη τὴν σάρκα εἶναι Υἱὸν, καὶ ἀκολουθεῖ τὰ ἄτοπα, ὅσα προείρηται ἐκ τοῦ λέγειν τὸν ἄνθρωπον Υἱόν· εἰ δὲ διὰ τὸν Λόγον ἡ σὰρξ Υἱὸς λέγεται, καὶ πρὸ τῆς σαρκὸς πάντως ὁ Λόγος ὢν Υἱὸς ἦν. Πῶς γὰρ οἷόν τε υἱοποιεῖν τινα ἑτέρους, μὴ ὄντα αὐτὸν υἱὸν, ὄντος μάλιστα πατρός; Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἑαυτῷ υἱοποιεῖ, Πατὴρ αὐτὸς ἂν εἴη· εἰ δὲ τῷ Πατρὶ, ἀνάγκη αὐτὸν εἶναι Υἱὸν, μᾶλλον δὲ αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν Υἱὸν, διʼ ὃν καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι υἱοποιοῦνται. ### English translation (Claude) 21. And what more does the Word contribute to our salvation than the Son, if, according to them, the Son is one and the Word another? For the command is that we believe, not in the Word, but in the Son. For John says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life.” And holy baptism, in which the foundation of our whole faith is anchored, is given not “into the Word,” but “into the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” If, then, according to them, the Word is one and the Son another, and the Word is not Son, baptism has nothing to do with the Word. How, then, according to them, is the Word with the Father, when he is not with him in the giving of baptism? But perhaps they would say, “The Word too is included in the name of the Father.” Why, then, not the Spirit too? Or is the Spirit outside the Father? And the man (if the Word is not Son) is named after the Father, and the Spirit after the man; and the unity, according to them, is no longer broadened into a trinity, but into a tetrad: Father, Word, Son, and Holy Spirit. Put to shame by this, they take refuge in something else and say that “not the man by himself whom the Lord wore, but both together, the Word and the man, are the Son; for both joined are named Son,” as they say. Which, then, is the cause of which, and which made the other Son? Or, to put it more plainly, is the Word called Son because of the flesh, or the flesh called Son because of the Word? Or neither of these, but the coming together of both? If the Word is Son because of the flesh, the flesh must be Son, and all the absurdities follow that were stated above from calling the man Son. But if the flesh is called Son because of the Word, the Word, existing before the flesh, was certainly Son. For how can anyone make others sons, not being a son himself, especially when there is a father? If, then, he makes sons for himself, he would be Father himself; but if for the Father, he must be Son, or rather he must be the Son, because of whom the others too are made sons. ### Scripture references - John 3:36: quotation, high confidence - Matt 28:19: quotation, high confidence ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 21 (Bright, 238–239; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-21). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 22 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-22 - Source: Bright, 239–240 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that God is our Father only because his own Son dwells in us, and that the Word was Son before the incarnation, since the ancients were already called sons. ### Greek text 22. Ἐπεὶ εἰ μὴ ὄντος αὐτοῦ Υἱοῦ, ἡμεῖς υἱοί ἐσμεν, ἡμῶν ἂν εἴη ὁ Θεὸς Πατὴρ, καὶ οὐκ αὐτοῦ. Πῶς οὖν ἰδιοποιεῖται μᾶλλον, λέγων, ‘ὁ Πατήρ μου, ’ καὶ, ‘ἐγὼ ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός;’ Εἰ γὰρ κοινὸς πάντων Πατὴρ, οὐ μόνου αὐτοῦ Πατὴρ, οὐδὲ μόνος αὐτὸς ‘ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός.’ Λέγει δέ ποτε καὶ ἡμῶν αὐτὸν λέγεσθαι Πατέρα, διὰ τὸ αὐτὸν ‘κεκοινωνηκέναι τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ σαρκί. Διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ γέγονεν ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ, ἵνʼ, ἐπειδὴ ὁ Λόγος ἐστὶν Υἱὸς, διὰ τὸν ἐνοικοῦντα ἐν ἡμῖν Υἱὸν λέγηται καὶ ἡμῶν Πατήρ. ‘Ἀπέστειλεʼ γὰρ, φησὶ, ‘τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ Υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ εἰς τὰς καρδίας ἡμῶν, κρᾶζον, Ἀββᾶ, ὁ Πατήρ Οὐκοῦν ὁ ἐν ἡμῖν Υἱὸς, τὸν ἴδιον Πατέρα ἐπικαλούμενος, καὶ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν ποιεῖ Πατέρα λέγεσθαι. Ἀμέλει ὥν οὐκ ἔστιν εἰς τὰς καρδίας ὁ Υἱὸς, τούτων οὐδὲ Πατὴρ ὁ Θεὸς ἂν λεχθείη. Εἴπερ οὖν διὰ τὸν Λόγον ὁ ἄνθρωπος λέγεται Υἱὸς, ἀνάγκη πᾶσα, λεγομένων καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως τῶν παλαιῶν ‘υἱῶν, ’ εἶναι καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐπιδημίας τὸν Λόγον Υἱὸν. ‘Υἱοὺςʼ γὰρ, φησὶν, ‘ἐγέννησα·’ καὶ ἐπὶ Νῶε, ‘ἰδόντες οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ·’ καὶ ἐν τῇ ᾠδῇ· ‘Οὐκ αὐτὸς οὖτός σου Πατήρ;’ Οὐκοῦν ἦν καὶ ὁ ἀληθῶς Υἱὸς, διʼ ὃν κἀκεῖνοι υἱοί. Εἰ δὲ κατʼ ἐκείνους πάλιν οὐδʼ ὁπότερον τούτων Υἱὸς, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν ἀμφοῖν σύνοδον, ἀνάγκη μηδʼ ὁπότερον εἶναι Υἱόν· φημὶ δὴ, μήτε τὸν Λόγον, μήτε τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἀλλά τινα αἰτίαν, διʼ ἢν καὶ συνήφθησαν· καὶ οὕτω δὲ προηγήσεται ἡ αἰτία τῆς συνάψεως, ἥτις Υἱὸν ποιεῖ. Οὑκοῦν καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο πρὸ τῆς σαρκὸς προῆν ὁ Υἰός. Τούτων δὴ λεγομένων, εἰς ἕτερον καταφεύξονται, λέγοντες ‘μὴ τὸν ἄνθρωπον εἶναι Υἱὸν, μηδὲ τὸ συναμφότερον, ἀλλὰ τὸν Λόγον ἐν ἀρχῇ μὲν εἶναι Λόγον ἀπλῶς· ὅτε δὲ ἐνηνθρώπησε, τότε ὠνομάσθαι Υἱόν· πρὸ γὰρ τῆς ἐπιφανείας μὴ εἶναι Υἱὸν, ἀλλὰ Λόγον μόνον· καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, οὐκ ὢν πρότερον σὰρξ, οὕτως ὁ Λόγος Υἱὸς γέγονεν, οὐκ ὢν πρότερον Υἱός.᾿ Ταῦτα μὲν ἐκείνων τὰ φλυαρήματα· ἔχει δὲ τὸν ἔλεγχον ἐναργῆ. ### English translation (Claude) 22. For if, while he is not Son, we are sons, God would be our Father and not his. How, then, does he claim him rather as his own, saying, “My Father,” and, “I came from the Father”? For if he is the common Father of all, he is not his Father alone, nor did he alone “come out from the Father.” He does say that he is sometimes called our Father too, because he “has shared in” our flesh. For this is why the Word became flesh: so that, since the Word is Son, God might be called our Father too because of the Son who dwells in us. “For he sent,” it says, “the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” So the Son in us, calling on his own Father, makes him be called our Father too. Indeed, of those in whose hearts the Son is not, God would not be called Father. If, then, the man is called Son because of the Word, then, since the ancients were called “sons” even before the incarnation, the Word must necessarily be Son before his coming as well. For “I begot sons,” it says; and in Noah's time, “the sons of God, seeing”; and in the Song, “Is not he your Father?” So there was also the one who is truly Son, because of whom those too were sons. But if, again according to them, neither of these is Son, but the Son is so because of the coming together of both, then necessarily neither is Son, I mean neither the Word nor the man, but some cause for which they were joined; and so the cause of the joining, which makes the Son, will come first. So in this way too the Son existed before the flesh. When this is said, they will take refuge in something else, saying that “neither the man is Son, nor both together, but the Word was simply Word in the beginning, and when he became man he was then named Son; for before his appearing he was not Son but only Word; and as the Word became flesh, not having been flesh before, so the Word became Son, not having been Son before.” Such is their nonsense; but it has a clear refutation. ### Scripture references - John 20:17: allusion, medium confidence - John 16:28: quotation, high confidence - Heb 2:14: quotation, high confidence - John 1:14: allusion, high confidence - Gal 4:6: quotation, high confidence - Isa 1:2: quotation, high confidence - Gen 6:2: quotation, high confidence - Deut 32:6: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “The Song” is the Song of Moses, Deut 32:6. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 22 (Bright, 239–240; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-22). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 23 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-23 - Source: Bright, 240–241 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that if the Word became Son only at the incarnation, no one could have known the Father before, and rejects the claim that the Son is later because the Old Testament speaks of the Word. ### Greek text 23. Εἰ γὰρ ὅλως ἐνανθρωπήσας γέγονεν Υἱὸς, ἡ ἐνανθρώπησις αἰτία. Καὶ εἰ ὁ ἄνθρωπος αἴτιος τοῦ εἶναι αὐτὸν Υἱὸν, ἢ τὸ συναμφότερον, καὶ τὰ αὐτὰ ἄτοπα ἀπαντήσει. Ἑπειτα, εἰ πρῶτον Λόγος, καὶ ὕστερον Υἱὸς, φανήσεται ὕστερον ἐγνωκὼς τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ οὐ πρότερον· οὐ γὰρ ᾗ Λόγος γινώσκει, ἀλλʼ ᾗ Υἱός· ‘οὐδεὶς γὰρ γινώσκει τὸν Πατέρα, εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱός.᾿ Ἀπαντήσει δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ὅτι ὕστερον ‘ἐν κόλποις τοῦ Πατρὸςʼ γέγονε, καὶ ὕστερον αὐτὸς καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ‘ἓνʼ γεγόνασι, καὶ ὕστερον τὸ, ‘ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα.᾿ Ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα ἐφʼ Υἱοῦ ἐλέχθη. Ἐκ δὴ τούτων ἀναγκασθήσονται εἰπεῖν, ‘Οὐδὲν ἦν ὁ Λόγος, ἀλλʼ ὄνομα μόνον Οὔτε γὰρ ἐν ἡμῖν μετὰ τοῦ Πατρὸς, οὔτε ὁ τὸν Λόγον ἑωρακὼς ἔβλεπε τὸν Πατέρα, οὔτε ὅλως τινὶ ἐγνώσθη ὁ Πατήρ· διὰ γὰρ Υἱοῦ γινώσκεται ὁ Πατήρ· οὕτω γὰρ καὶ γέγραπται, ‘καὶ ᾦ ἂν ὁ Υἱὸς ἀποκαλύψῃ.’ Μήπω δὲ ὄντος τοῦ Λόγου Υἱοῦ, οὐδέπω τις ἐγίνωσκε τὸν Πατέρα. Πῶς οὖν Μωσεῖ, πῶς τοῖς πατράσιν ὤφθη; αὐτὸς γὰρ ἐν ταῖς Βασιλείαις φησὶν, ‘Ἀποκαλυφθεὶς ἀπεκαλύφθην πρὸς πάντας τοὺς πατέρας ὑμῶν.᾿ Εἰ δὲ ἀπεκαλύφθη Θεὸς, δῆλον ὅτι ἦν ὁ ἀποκαλύπτων Υἱὸς, ὡς αὐτός φησι, ‘καὶ ᾧ ἐὰν ὁ Υἱὸς ἀποκαλύψῃ. Ἀσεβὲς μὲν οὖν καὶ ἀνόητον τὸ λέγειν ἄλλον εἶναι τὸν Λόγον, καὶ ἄλλον εἶναι τὸν Υἱόν. Πόθεν δὲ ἄρα τὴν τοιαύτην ὑπόνοιαν ἐσχήκασιν, ἐρέσθαι καλόν. Φασὶ δὴ, ‘διὰ τὸ μὴ εἰρῆσθαι ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ περὶ Υἱοῦ, ἀλλὰ περὶ Λόγου, ʼ καὶ διὰ τοῦτο νεώτερον ὑπονοεῖν τοῦ Λόγου τὸν Υἱὸν διαβεβαιοῦνται, ‘ὅτι μὴ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ, ἀλλʼ ἐν τῇ καινῇ μόνῃ περὶ αὐτοῦ ἐλέχθη. Ταῦτʼ ἐκεῖνοι ἀσεβῶς φθέγγονται. Πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ διαιρεῖν τὰς διαθήκας, καὶ μὴ τὴν ἑτέραν τῆς ἑτέρας ἔχεσθαι, Μανιχαίων καὶ Ἰουδαίων τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα, τῶν μὲν τῇ παλαιῇ, τῶν δὲ τῇ νέᾳ ἀντιλεγόντων· ἔπειτα κατʼ αὐτοὺς, εἰ τὰ ἐν τῇ παλαιῇ κείμενα προάγει τῷ χρόνῳ, τὰ δὲ ἐν τῇ νέᾳ νεώτερά ἐστι, καὶ ἐκ τῶν γραμμάτων οἱ χρόνοι κρίνονται, ἀνάγκη πάλιν νεώτερα εἶναι τὸ ‘Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν, ʼ τό τε μονογενὴς, ᾿ καὶ τὸ ‘ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα· ʼ οὐ γὰρ ἐκ τῆς παλαιᾶς, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τῆς καινῆς ταῦτα μαρτυρεῖται. ### English translation (Claude) 23. For if he became Son simply by becoming man, the becoming man is the cause. And if the man is the cause of his being Son, or both together, the same absurdities will confront them. Then, if he was first Word and later Son, he will appear to have known the Father later and not before; for he does not know him as Word but as Son: “for no one knows the Father except the Son.” And this will confront them too: that he came to be “in the bosom of the Father” later, and later he and the Father became “one,” and later came “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” For all these things were said of the Son. From this they will be forced to say, “The Word was nothing, but only a name.” For he was neither in us with the Father, nor did anyone who had seen the Word see the Father, nor was the Father known to anyone at all; for the Father is known through the Son, as it is written, “and anyone to whom the Son reveals him.” And since the Word was not yet Son, no one yet knew the Father. How, then, was he seen by Moses, how by the fathers? For he himself says in the Kingdoms, “I revealed myself plainly to all your fathers.” And if God was revealed, it is clear that there was the Son who reveals, as he himself says, “and anyone to whom the Son reveals him.” It is impious and senseless, then, to say that the Word is one and the Son another. It is good to ask where they got such a notion. They say that it is “because the Old Testament speaks not of the Son but of the Word”; and for this reason they firmly suppose the Son to be later than the Word, “because he was spoken of not in the Old but only in the New.” This is what they impiously say. For, first, to divide the Testaments and not have the one hold to the other is the practice of Manichaeans and Jews, the former opposing the Old and the latter the New. Then, on their view, if what is in the Old comes earlier in time, and what is in the New is later, and times are judged from the writings, then “I and the Father are one,” and “only-begotten,” and “He who has seen me has seen the Father” must in turn be later; for these are attested not from the Old but from the New. ### Scripture references - Matt 11:27: quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - 1 Sam 2:27: quotation, medium confidence ### Translation notes - “In the Kingdoms” means the books of Samuel and Kings (LXX 1–4 Kingdoms); the quotation adapts 1 Sam 2:27. The remark about Manichaeans and Jews is the author's polemic, translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 23 (Bright, 240–241; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-23). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 24 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-24 - Source: Bright, 241–242 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author lists Old Testament texts about the Son (Ps 2, 9, 45, 110; Isa 5; Prov 8; Dan 3) and argues that “beloved” means “only-begotten,” so that the Word is always Son. ### Greek text 24. Οὐ μὴν δὲ, ἀλλʼ ἀληθῶς καὶ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ περὶ Υἱοῦ πολλὰ λέγεται· οἷον ἐν τῷ δευτέρῳ ψαλμῷ τὸ Ὑἱός μου εἶ σὺ, ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε·’ καὶ ἐν τῷ ἐννάτῳ ἡ ἐπιγραφὴ, ‘Εἰς τὸ τέλος ὑπὲρ τῶν κρυφίων τοῦ υἱοῦ, ψαλμὸς τῷ Δαυΐδ.᾿ καὶ ἐν τῷ τεσσαρακοστῷ τετάρτῳ, ‘Εἰς τὸ τέλος ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλλοιωθησομένων, τοῖς υἱοῖς Κορὲ, εἰς σύνεσιν, ᾠδὴ ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ·᾿ καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἡσαΐᾳ, ‘Ἄσω δὴ τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ ᾆσμα τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ τῷ ἀμπελῶνί μου. Ἀμπελὼν ἐγενήθη τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ. ʼ Τὸ δὲ ἀγαπητὸς τίς ἂν εἴη ἢ Υἱὸς μονογενής; ὡς καὶ ἐν τῷ ἑκατοστῷ ἐννάτῳ, ‘ἐκ γαστρὸς πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε, ’ περὶ οὗ ὕστερον λεχθήσεται· καὶ ἐν Παροιμίαις δὲ, ‘πρὸ δὲ πάντων τῶν βουνῶν γεννᾷ με·᾿ καὶ ἐν τῷ Δανιὴλ, ‘καὶ ἡ ὅρασις τοῦ τετάρτου ὁμοία Υἱῷ Θεοῦ, ʼ καὶ ἄλλα πλείονα. Εἰ τοίνυν ἐκ τῆς παλαιᾶς ἡ ἀρχαιότης, ἀρχαῖος ἂν εἴη καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς, ὁ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ ἐν πολλοῖς σαφηνιζόμενος. Ἀλλὰ ‘ναὶ, ʼ φασὶ, ‘κεῖται μὲν, προφητικῶς δὲ ἔστω. ʼ Οὐκοῦν καὶ περὶ τοῦ Λόγου προφητικῶς εἰρῆσθαι λεχθείη ἄν· οὐ γὰρ τὸ μὲν, τὸ δέ. Εἰ γὰρ τὸ ‘Υἱός μου εἶ σὺ, ʼ ἐπὶ μέλλοντος, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ τὸ Τῷ Λόγῳ Κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν Οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν, ‘ἐγένοντο, ʼ οὐδὲ ‘ἐποίησεν.᾿ Ὅτι δὲ τὸ ‘ἐστερέωσενʼ ἐπὶ μέλλοντος, φησίν· ‘Ὁ Κύριος ἐβασίλευσεν·᾿ εἶτα· ‘Καὶ γὰρ ἐστερέωσε τὴν οἰκουμένην, ἥτις οὐ σαλευθήσεται Καὶ εἰ τὸ ἐν τῷ τεσσαρακοστῷ τετάρτῳ, ‘ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ, ʼ ἐπὶ μέλλοντος, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ τὸ ἐπιφερόμενον τὸ ‘ἐξηρεύξατο ἡ καρδία μου Λόγον ἀγαθόν.’ Καὶ εἰ τὸ ἐκ γαστρὸςʼ ἐπὶ ἀνθρώπου, ἄρα καὶ τὸ ‘ἐκ καρδίας·᾿ Εἰ γὰρ ἡ γαστὴρ ἀνθρώπινον, καὶ ἡ καρδία σωματικόν. Εἰ δὲ τὸ ‘ἐκ καρδίαςʼ ἀίδιον, καὶ τὸ ‘ἐκ γαστρὸς ἀίδιον· καὶ εἰ ὁ μονογενὴς ἐν κόλποις, καὶ ὁ ἀγαπητὸς ἐν κόλποις. Ταὐτὸν γάρ ἐστι τό τε μονογενὲς καὶ τὸ ἀγαπητὸν, ὡς τὸ ‘οὖτός ἐστιν ὁ Υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός.’ Οὐ γὰρ δὴ τὴν εἰς αὐτὸν ἀγάπην σημᾶναι θέλων, εἶπε τὸ ‘ἀγαπητὸς, ’ ἵνα μὴ τοὺς ἄλλους μισεῖν δόξῃ· ἀλλὰ τὸ μονογενὲς ἐδήλου, ἵνα τὸ μόνον ἐξ αὐτοῦ εἶναι αὐτὸν δείξῃ. Καὶ τῷʼ Ἀβραὰμ γοῦν σημᾶναι θέλων ὁ Λόγος τὸ μονογενὲς, φησί· ‘προσένεγκε τὸν υἱόν σου τὸν ἀγαπητόν.’ Παντὶ δὲ δῆλον, ἐκ τῆς Σάῤῥας μόνον εἶναι τὸν Ἰσαάκ. Ἔστιν ἄρα ὁ Λόγος Υἱὸς, οὐκ ἄρτι γεγονὼς ἢ ὀνομασθεὶς Υἱὸς, ἀλλʼ ἀεὶ Υἱός. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ Υἱὸς, οὐδὲ λόγος· καὶ εἰ μὴ λόγος, οὐδὲ Υἱὸς. Τὸ γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς Υἱός ἐστι. Τί δέ ἐστιν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς εἰ μὴ Λόγος, ὁ ἐκ καρδίας προελθὼν, καὶ ἐκ γαστρὸς γεννηθείς; οὐ γὰρ ὁ Πατὴρ Λόγος ἐστίν· οὐδὲ ὁ Λόγος Πατήρ ἐστιν· ἀλλʼ ὁ μὲν Πατὴρ, ὁ δὲ Υἱός· καὶ ὁ μὲν γεννᾷ, ὁ δὲ γεννᾶται. ### English translation (Claude) 24. Not so; truly much is said about the Son in the Old Testament too: for example, in the second psalm, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; and in the ninth, the title, “To the end, concerning the hidden things of the son, a psalm of David”; and in the forty-fourth, “To the end, concerning those who shall be changed, for the sons of Korah, for understanding, a song concerning the beloved”; and in Isaiah, “I will sing to the beloved a song of the beloved concerning my vineyard. The beloved had a vineyard.” And who would the beloved be but the only-begotten Son? As also in the hundred and ninth, “From the womb, before the morning star, I begot you,” about which more will be said later; and in the Proverbs, “before all the hills he begets me”; and in Daniel, “and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of God”; and many others. If, then, antiquity comes from the Old Testament, the Son too would be ancient, being made clear in many places in the Old. “Yes,” they say, “it is there, but let it be taken prophetically.” Then it could also be said that what is said about the Word is said prophetically; for it cannot be one way for the one and another for the other. For if “You are my Son” refers to the future, so clearly does “By the Word of the Lord the heavens were made firm.” For it did not say “came to be,” nor “made.” And that “made firm” refers to the future, it says: “The Lord has reigned,” and then, “For he has made firm the world, which will not be moved.” And if “concerning the beloved” in the forty-fourth psalm refers to the future, so clearly does what follows, “My heart has poured forth a good Word.” And if “from the womb” refers to a man, then so does “from the heart.” For if the womb is human, the heart too is bodily. But if “from the heart” is eternal, “from the womb” is eternal too. And if the only-begotten is in the bosom, the beloved too is in the bosom. For only-begotten and beloved are the same, as in “This is my beloved Son.” For he did not say “beloved” wishing to signify his love toward him, lest he seem to hate the others; but he was making known that he is only-begotten, to show that he alone is from him. So the Word, wishing to signify to Abraham what “only-begotten” means, says, “Offer your son, the beloved.” And it is clear to everyone that Isaac alone was from Sarah. So the Word is Son, not having lately become or been named Son, but always Son. For if he is not Son, he is not word either; and if not word, not Son either. For what is from the father is son. And what is from the Father but the Word, who came forth from the heart and was begotten from the womb? For the Father is not Word, nor is the Word Father; but one is Father and the other Son; and one begets, the other is begotten. ### Scripture references - Ps 2:7: quotation, high confidence - Ps 9:1: quotation, medium confidence - Ps 45:1 (44:1 LXX): quotation, medium confidence - Isa 5:1: quotation, high confidence - Ps 110:3 (109:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Prov 8:25: quotation, high confidence - Dan 3:25 (3:92 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 33:6 (32:6 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 93:1 (92:1 LXX): quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: allusion, high confidence - Matt 3:17: quotation, high confidence - Gen 22:2: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The psalm numbers and titles are those of the Greek Psalter: the ninth (title), the forty-fourth (Ps 45, title and v. 1), the hundred and ninth (Ps 110:3). The psalm titles are not numbered as verses in English Bibles. “My heart has poured forth a good Word” (Ps 45:1; LXX 44:2) was read by many Fathers of the Father's begetting of the Word. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 24 (Bright, 241–242; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/15/#p-24). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 25 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-25 - Source: Bright, 242–243 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author rejects both Arius and Sabellius, and shows that the Sabellian image of one Father “broadened” into Son and Spirit makes the incarnation, baptism, and creation merely temporary. ### Greek text 25. Μαίνεται μὲν οὖν Ἄρειος, ‘ἐξ οὐκ ὄντωνʼ εἶναι λέγων τὸν Υἱὸν, καὶ ‘ἦν ποτε ὅτε οὐκ ἦν.’ Μαίνεται δὲ καὶ Σαβέλλιος, λέγων τὸν Πατέρα εἶναι Υἱὸν, καὶ ἔμπαλιν τὸν Υἱὸν εἶναι Πατέρα, ὑποστάσει μὲν ἓν, ὀνόματι δὲ δύο· μαίνεται δὲ καὶ παραδείγματι χρώμενος τῇ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάριτι· φησὶ γὰρ, Ὥσπερ ‘“διαιρέσεις) χαρισμάτων εἰσὶ, τὸ δὲ αὐτὸ Πνεῦμα, ” οὕτω καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ὁ αὐτὸς μὲν ἔστι, πλατύνεται δὲ εἰς Υἱὸν καὶ Πνεῦμα, ’ Ἔστι δὲ τοῦτο μεστὸν ἀτοπίας. Εἰ γὰρ ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος, οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστιν, ἔσται ὁ Πατὴρ Λόγος καὶ Πνεῦμα ἅγιον, ᾧ μὲν γινόμενος Πατὴρ, ᾧ δὲ Λόγος, ᾧ δὲ Πνεῦμα, πρὸς τὴν χρείαν ἑκάστου ἁρμοζόμενος, καὶ ὀνόματι μὲν Υἱὸς καὶ Πνεῦμα, τῷ δὲ ὄντι Πατὴρ μόνον· ἀρχὴν μὲν ἔχων τὸ γίνεσθαι Υἱὸς, παυόμενος δὲ τοῦ λέγεσθαι Πατήρ· καὶ ἐνανθρωπήσας μὲν ὀνόματι, τῇ δὲ ἀληθείᾳ μηδὲ ἐπιδημήσας· καὶ ψευδόμενος μὲν τῷ λέγειν, ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, τῷ δὲ ὄντι αὐτὸς ὢν ὁ Πατήρ· καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα ἐπὶ Σαβελλίου ἄτοπα ἀπαντᾶ. Ἀνάγκη δὲ καὶ παυθήσεσθαι τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος, τῆς χρείας πληρωθείσης· καὶ ἔσται λοιπὸν ἄχρι παιδιᾶς τὰ γινόμενα, ὅτι μὴ ἀληθείᾳ ἀλλʼ ὀνόματι ἐπεδείχθη. Παυομένου δὲ τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ Υἱοῦ κατʼ αὐτοὺς, παύσεται καὶ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἡ χάρις· ‘εἰςʼ γὰρ ‘Υἱὸνʼ ἐδόθη. Καὶ τί ἀκολουθήσει ἢ ἀφανισμὸς τῆς κτίσεως; εἰ γὰρ ἵνα ἡμεῖς κτισθῶμεν προῆλθεν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ, προελθόντος αὐτοῦ, ἐσμεν, δῆλον ὅτι, ἀναχωροῦντος αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸν Πατέρα, ὥς φασιν, οὐκ ἔτι ἐσόμεθα. Οὔτω γὰρ ἔσται, ὥσπερ ἦν· οὕτως οὐκ ἔτʼ ἐσόμεθα, ὥσπερ οὖν οὐκ ἦμεν. Οὐκέτι γὰρ προελθόντος, οὐκέτι ἡ κτίσις ἔσται. ### English translation (Claude) 25. Arius, then, is mad in saying that the Son is “from nothing” and “there was once when he was not.” But Sabellius is mad too, in saying that the Father is the Son and in turn the Son is the Father, one in hypostasis but two in name. And he is mad also in using the grace of the Spirit as an example. For he says, “As there are ‘varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit,’ so also the Father is the same, but is broadened into Son and Spirit.” But this is full of absurdity. For if it is with God as with the Spirit, the Father will be Word and Holy Spirit, becoming Father to one, Word to another, Spirit to another, adapting himself to the need of each; Son and Spirit in name, but in reality Father only; having a beginning in becoming Son, and ceasing to be called Father; become man in name, but in truth not having come among us at all; lying when he says, “I and the Father,” but in reality being himself the Father; and all the other absurdities that confront Sabellius. And the name of the Son and of the Spirit will necessarily cease when the need has been met; and what happened will then be no more than play, since it was shown not in truth but in name. And when the name of the Son ceases, according to them, the grace of baptism too will cease; for it was given “into” the Son. And what will follow but the destruction of creation? For if the Word came forth so that we might be created, and we exist because he came forth, it is clear that when he withdraws into the Father, as they say, we shall no longer exist. For he will be as he was; and so we shall no longer exist, as once we did not. For when he has no longer come forth, creation will no longer exist. ### Scripture references - 1 Cor 12:4: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The illustration from 1 Cor 12:4 is here ascribed to Sabellius; the heading in modern editions connects it with Marcellus of Ancyra, whose teaching the author treats as a form of Sabellianism. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 25 (Bright, 242–243; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-25). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 26 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-26 - Source: Bright, 243 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues from 1 John and the Gospel that the Son is the eternal life and Word that was with the Father, and identifies the “hand” of God in the Psalms with the Son. ### Greek text 26. Ἄτοπα μὲν οὖν ταῦτα. Ὅτι δὲ ὁ Υἱὸς οὐκ ἀρχὴν ἔχει τοῦ εἶναι, ἀλλʼ ἀεὶ καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως παρὰ τῷ Πατρί ἐστι, δηλοῖ ὁ Ἰωάννης ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ ἐπιστολῇ, λέγων οὕτως, ‘Ὃ ἦν ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς, ὃ ἀκηκόαμεν, ὃ ἑωράκαμεν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἡμῶν, ὃ ἐθεασάμεθα, καὶ αἱ χεῖρες ἡμῶν ἐψηλάφησαν περὶ τοῦ Λόγου τῆς ζωῆς· καὶ ἡ ζωὴ ἐφανερώθη, καὶ ἑωράκαμεν, καὶ μαρτυροῦμεν, καὶ ἀπαγγέλλομεν ὑμῖν τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον, ἥτις ἦν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ ἐφανερώθη ἡμῖν.᾿ Ἐνταῦθα λέγων, ὅτι ἡ ζωὴ οὐ γέγονεν, ἀλλʼ ‘ἦν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, ʼ ἐν τῷ τέλει τῆς ἐπιστολῆς τὸν Υἱὸν εἶναί φησι τὴν ζωήν· γράφει δʼ οὖν· ‘Καί ἐσμεν ἐν τῷ ἀληθινῷ, ἐν τῷ Υἱῷ αὐτοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χριστῷ· οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἀληθινὸς Θεὸς, καὶ ζωὴ αἰώνιος.᾿ Εἰ δὲ ὁ Υἱός ἐστιν ἡ ζωὴ, καὶ αὕτη πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ εἰ ὁ Υἱὸς ἦν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, λέγει δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς, ‘καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, ʼ ὁ Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ Λόγος, ὁ ἀεὶ ὢν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα. Ὡσπερ δὲ ὁ Υἱὸς Λόγος ἐστὶν, οὕτως ὁ Θεὸς ὁ αὐτὸς ἂν εἴη ὁ Πατήρ. Ὁ μέντοι Υἱὸς κατὰ τὸνʼ Ἰωάννην ‘Θεὸςʼ οὐχ ἀπλῶς, ἀλλʼ ‘ἀληθινὸς Θεόςʼ ἐστι. Καὶ γὰρ κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τοῦτον, ‘καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος·᾿ ἔλεγέ τε ὁ Υἱὸς, ‘ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ζωή.᾿ Οὐκοῦν ὁ Υἱὸς Λόγος ἐστὶ καὶ ζωὴ ἡ οὖσα παρὰ τῷ Πατρί. Πάλιν δὲ τὸ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ Ἰωάννῃ εἰρημένον, ‘ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς, ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ Πατρός, ᾿ δείκνυσι τὸν Υἱὸν ἀεὶ εἶναι. Ὃν γὰρ λέγει ὁ Ἰωάννης ‘Υἱὸν, ᾿ τοῦτον ‘χεῖραʼ ὁ Δαβὶδ ψάλλει λέγων· ‘Ἱνατί ἀποστρέφεις τὴν χεῖρά σου καὶ τὴν δεξιάν σου ἐκ μέσου τοῦ κόλπου σου;’ Οὐκοῦν εἰ ἡ χεὶρ ἐν τῷ κόλπῳ, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς ἐν κόλπῳ, ὁ Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη ἡ χεὶρ, καὶ ἡ χεὶρ ἂν εἴη ὁ Υἱὸς, διʼ οὗ ἐποίησε τὰ πάντα ὁ Πατήρ. ‘Ἡ χείρ σουʼ γὰρ, φησὶν, ‘ἐποίησε ταῦτα πάντα, ʼ καὶ, ‘τῇ χειρὶ ἐξήγαγε τὸν λαόν· ʼ οὐκοῦν διὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ‘αὕτη ἡ ἀλλοίωσις τῆς δεξιᾶς τοῦ ὑψίστου, ʼ καὶ πάλιν, ‘εἰς τὸ τέλος, ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλλοιωθησομένων, ᾠδὴ ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦʼ ὁ ἀγαπητὸς ἄρα ἐστὶν ἡ χεὶρ ἀλλοιωθεῖσα, περὶ οὗ καὶ λέγει ἡ θεία φωνή· ‘Οὖτός ἐστιν ὁ Υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός, ᾿ Ἴσον ἄρα ἐστὶν ‘ αὕτη ἡ χείρ μουʼ τῷ ‘ οὗτος ὁ Υἱός μου.᾿ ### English translation (Claude) 26. These things are absurd. But that the Son has no beginning of being, but always, even before the incarnation, is with the Father, John makes clear in his first letter, saying: “What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked upon and our hands have touched, concerning the Word of life; and the life was made manifest, and we have seen and bear witness and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us.” Saying here that the life did not come to be but “was with the Father,” at the end of the letter he says that the Son is the life. He writes: “And we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” And if the Son is the life, and the life was with the Father, and if the Son was with the Father, and the same writer says, “and the Word was with God,” the Son would be the Word, who is always with the Father. And as the Son is the Word, so God would be the Father. Moreover, according to John the Son is not simply “God,” but “true God.” For according to the same writer, “and the Word was God”; and the Son said, “I am the life.” So the Son is the Word and the life that is with the Father. And again, what is said in the same John, “the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father,” shows that the Son always exists. For the one John calls “Son,” David sings of as the “hand,” saying, “Why do you turn away your hand, and your right hand, from the midst of your bosom?” So if the hand is in the bosom, and the Son is in the bosom, the Son would be the hand, and the hand would be the Son, through whom the Father made all things. For “your hand,” it says, “made all these things,” and, “by his hand he brought out the people”; so, through the Son. And if “this is the change of the right hand of the Most High,” and again, “To the end, concerning those who shall be changed, a song concerning the beloved,” then the beloved is the hand that was changed, of whom the divine voice also says, “This is my beloved Son.” So “this is my hand” is equal to “this is my Son.” ### Scripture references - 1 John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - 1 John 1:2: quotation, high confidence - 1 John 5:20: quotation, high confidence - John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - John 14:6: quotation, high confidence - John 1:18: quotation, high confidence - Ps 74:11 (73:11 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Isa 66:2: quotation, high confidence - Exod 13:3: allusion, medium confidence - Ps 77:10 (76:11 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 45:1 (44:1 LXX): quotation, medium confidence - Matt 3:17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The psalms are Ps 74:11 (LXX 73:11) and Ps 77:10 (LXX 76:11), which the author reads christologically; the “change of the right hand” is taken to mean the incarnation. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 26 (Bright, 243; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-26). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 27 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-27 - Source: Bright, 243–244 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author answers those who refer Ps 110:3 (“from the womb”) to Mary: like “heart,” “womb” is used of God figuratively and signifies the Son's genuine birth from the Father. ### Greek text 27. Ἐπειδὴ δέ τινεσ τῶν ἀπαιδεύτων, ἀναιροῦντες τὸ εἶναι Υἱὸν, εὐτελίζουσι τὸ ‘ἐκ γαστρὸς πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἐγέννησά σε, ’ ὡς ἂν ἐπὶ τῆς Μαρίας ἁρμόζοντος τούτου, φάσκοντες πρὸ τοῦ ἑωθινοῦ ἀστέρος γεγεννῆσθαι αὐτὸν ἀπὸ Μαρίας, (μὴ γὰρ ἂν ἐπὶ Θεοῦ ἁρμόζειν γαστέρα λέγειν), ὀλίγα εἰπεῖν ἀνάγκη. Εἰ μὲν οὖν, ὅτι ἡ ‘γαστὴρʼ ἀνθρώπινόν ἐστι, διὰ τοῦτο ἀλλότριον Θεοῦ, δῆλον ὅτι καὶ ἡ ‘καρδία ἀνθρώπινον ἔχει τὸ σημαινόμενον· ἀκολουθεῖ γὰρ τὸν καρδίαν ἔχοντα ἔχειν καὶ γαστέρα. Ἀμφοτέρων δὴ ἀνθρωπίνων ὄντων, ἢ ἀναιρεῖν ἑκάτερον ἀνάγκη, ἢ ἀμφοτέρων τὴν διάνοιαν ζητεῖν χρή. Ὡς γὰρ ἐκ καρδίας λόγος, οὕτως ἐκ γαστρὸς γέννημα. Καὶ ὥσπερ, καρδίας Θεοῦ λεγομένης, οὐκ ἀνθρωπίνην νοοῦμεν αὐτήν· οὕτως ἐὰν ‘ἐκ γαστρὸς ἡ γραφὴ λέγῃ, οὐ σωματικὴν δεῖ ταύτην ἐκδέχεσθαι. Ἔθος γὰρ τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ ἀνθρωπίνως τὰ ὑπὲρ ἄνθρωπον λαλεῖν καὶ σημαίνειν. Ἀμέλει περὶ τῆς κτίσεως διηγούμενός φησιν· ‘Αἱ χεῖρές σου ἐποίησάν με, καὶ ἔπλασάν με·’ καὶ, ‘ἡ χείρ μου ἐποίησε ταῦτα πάντα·’ καὶ, ‘αὐτὸς ἐνετείλατο, καὶ ἐκτίσθησαν.’ Ἁρμοζόντως ἄρα περὶ ἑκάστου σημαίνει τοῦ μὲν Υἱοῦ τὸ ἴδιον καὶ τὸ γνήσιον, τῆς δὲ κτίσεως τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ εἶναι. Τὰ μὲν γὰρ ποιεῖ καὶ κτίζει, τὸν δὲ γεννᾷ ἐξ ἑαυτοῦ, Λόγον, Σοφίαν. ‘Γαστὴρʼ γὰρ καὶ ‘καρδίαʼ τὸ ἴδιον καὶ γνήσιον δηλοῦσι, Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἡμεῖς τὸ μὲν γνήσιον ἐκ γαστρὸς ἔχομεν, τὰ δὲ ἔργα διὰ χειρὸς ποιοῦμεν. ### English translation (Claude) 27. But since some uneducated people, doing away with the Son's being, make light of “From the womb, before the morning star, I begot you,” as if this fitted Mary, saying that he was born of Mary before the morning star (for, they say, it could not fit God to speak of a womb), a few things must be said. If, because the “womb” is human, it is foreign to God, clearly the “heart” too has a human meaning; for whoever has a heart has a womb as well. Since both are human, one must either do away with both or seek the meaning of both. For as a word is from the heart, so an offspring is from the womb. And just as, when God's heart is spoken of, we do not understand it as human, so if Scripture says “from the womb,” one must not take it bodily. For it is the custom of divine Scripture to speak of and signify in human terms things that are beyond man. Indeed, speaking of the creation it says, “Your hands made me and formed me,” and, “My hand made all these things,” and, “He commanded, and they were created.” So it fittingly signifies in each case: for the Son, what is proper and genuine; for creation, the beginning of being. For the latter he makes and creates, but the former he begets from himself, Word and Wisdom. For “womb” and “heart” indicate what is proper and genuine. For we too have what is genuinely ours from the womb, but we make our works by the hand. ### Scripture references - Ps 110:3 (109:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Ps 119:73 (118:73 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Isa 66:2: quotation, high confidence - Ps 148:5: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - Ps 110:3 (LXX 109:3) is quoted in its Greek form, which differs considerably from the Hebrew. The other psalms are Ps 119:73 (LXX 118:73) and Ps 148:5; “My hand made all these things” is Isa 66:2. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 27 (Bright, 243–244; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-27). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 28 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-28 - Source: Bright, 244–245 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that “before the morning star” cannot refer to Christ's birth from Mary, and, from Rev 22:16, takes the morning star to be the incarnate Christ, so the begetting precedes the incarnation. ### Greek text 28. Τί οὖν, φασὶ, καὶ τὸ ‘πρὸ τοῦ ἑωσφόρου;’ Ἐγὼ δʼ ἂν εἴποιμι, εἰ τὸ πρὸ τοῦ ἑωσφόρου τούτου θαυμαστὴν δείκνυσι τὴν ἐκ Μαρίας γέννησιν, πολλοὶ καὶ ἄλλοι πρὸ τῆς τοῦ ἀστέρος ἀνατολῆς ἐγεννήθησαν. Τί οὖν θαυμαστὸν ἐπὶ τούτου εἴρηται, ὅτι ὡς ἐξαιρέτου τινὸς αὐτοῦ μνημονεύει, κοινοῦ ὄντος καὶ ἐπὶ πολλῶν; ἔπειτα διαφέρει τὸ ‘γεννῆσαιʼ τοῦ ἐξαγαγεῖν· τὸ μὲν γὰρ γεννῆσαι ἀρχὴν ἔχει καταβολῆς, τὸ δὲ ἐξαγαγεῖν οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν ἢ τὸ ὑπάρχον προαγαγεῖν. Εἰ τοίνυν ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος ἁρμόζει ἡ φωνὴ, ἰστέον ὅτι οὐ τότε ἀρχὴν γενέσεως εἴληφεν ὅτε τοῖς ποιμέσιν εὐηγγελίσθη ‘νυκτὸς, ’ ἀλλʼ ὅτε ὁ ἄγγελος ἐλάλησε πρὸς τὴν παρθένον. Οὐκ ἦν δὲ τότε νὺξ, οὐ γὰρ εἴρηται· νὺξ δὲ ἦν, ὅτε ἐξῆλθεν ἀπὸ τῆς γαστρός. Ταύτην τὴν διαφορὰν τίθησιν ἡ γραφὴ, καὶ τὸ μὲν γεγεννῆσθαι πρὸ ἑωσφόρου φησί τὸ δὲ ἐκ γαστρὸς πρόοδον ὀνομάζει, ὡς ἐν εἰκοστῷ πρώτῳ ψαλμῷ, ‘σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐκσπάσας με ἐκ γαστρός.’ Ἄλλως τε οὐκ εἶπε ‘πρὸ ἀνατολῆς ἑωσφόρου, ’ ἀλλʼ ἁπλῶς ‘πρὸ ἑωσφόρου.’ Εἰ τοίνυν ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος ληπτέον τὸ ῥητὸν, ἀνάγκη ἢ πρὸ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ εἶναι τὸ σῶμα· πρὸ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ γὰρ τὰ ἄστρα· ἢ ζητεῖν τὸν νοῦν τοῦ γράμματος, ὃ παρὰ Ἰωάννου ἐκλαβεῖν δυνατόν· ἐν γὰρ τῇ Ἀποκαλύψει φησὶν, ‘Ἐγὼ τὸ Α καὶ τὸ Ω, καὶ ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος, καὶ ἡ ἀρχὴ καὶ τὸ τέλος. Μακάριοι οἱ πλατύνοντες τὰς στολὰς αὐτῶν, ἵνα ἔσται ἡ ἐξουσία αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ ξύλου τῆς ζωῆς, καὶ τοῖς πυλῶσιν εἰσέλθωσιν εἰς τὴν πόλιν. Ἔξω οἱ κύνες, καὶ οἱ φαρμακοὶ, καὶ οἱ πόρνοι, καὶ οἱ φονεῖς, καὶ οἱ εἰδωλολάτραι, καὶ πᾶς ποιῶν καὶ φιλῶν ψεῦδος. Ἐγὼ Ἰησοῦς ἔπεμψα τὸν ἄγγελόν μου, μαρτυρῆσαι ὑμῖν ταῦτα ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις. Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ῥίζα καὶ τὸ γένος Δαβὶδ, ὁ ἀστὴρ ὁ λαμπρὸς, ὁ πρωϊνός. Καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα καὶ ἡ νύμφη λέγουσι, Ἔρχου· καὶ ὁ ἀκούων εἰπάτω, Ἔρχου· καὶ ὁ διψῶν ἐρχέσθω· ὁ θέλων λαβέτω ὕδωρ ζωῆς δωρεάν· Εἰ τοίνυν τὸ γένος Δαβίδ ἐστιν ὁ ἀστὴρ, ὁ λαμπρὸς, ὁ πρωϊνὸς, δῆλόν ἐστι τὸ κατὰ σάρκα τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἑωσφόρον εἰρῆσθαι, οὗ προϋπῆρχε τὸ ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ γέννημα· ὡς εἶναι τοιοῦτον τὸ ἐν τῷ ψαλμῷ, ‘ἐξ ἐμαυτοῦ σε γεγέννηκα πρὸ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα ἐπιφανείας Τὸ γὰρ πρὸ ἑωσφόρου ἴσον ἐστὶ τῷ ‘πρὸ τῆς σαρκώσεως τοῦ Λόγου.’ ### English translation (Claude) 28. “What then,” they say, “of ‘before the morning star’?” I would say that, if “before the morning star” shows that his birth from Mary was wonderful, many others too were born before the rising of the star. What wonderful thing, then, has been said in his case, that it mentions him as someone exceptional, when this is common to many? Then, “to beget” differs from “to bring out”; for to beget involves a beginning of conception, while to bring out is nothing other than to bring forward what already exists. If, then, the saying fits the body, one must know that the body did not receive its beginning of coming to be when the good news was announced to the shepherds “by night,” but when the angel spoke to the virgin. And it was not night then, for it is not said so; but it was night when he came out of the womb. Scripture makes this distinction: it says that he was begotten before the morning star, but calls his coming out of the womb a going forth, as in the twenty-first psalm, “You are the one who drew me out of the womb.” Besides, it did not say “before the rising of the morning star,” but simply “before the morning star.” If, then, the text is to be taken of the body, either the body must be before Adam, for the stars are before Adam, or one must seek the meaning of the letter. And this can be learned from John. For in the Revelation he says: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are those who broaden their robes, so that their authority may be over the tree of life, and they may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the sexually immoral and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who does and loves falsehood. I, Jesus, sent my angel to testify these things to you in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come; and let him who hears say, Come; and let him who is thirsty come; let him who wishes take the water of life freely.” If, then, the offspring of David is the bright morning star, it is clear that the Savior according to the flesh is called “morning star,” and that the begetting from God existed before it; so that the psalm means this: “I have begotten you from myself before your appearing in the flesh.” For “before the morning star” is equal to “before the incarnation of the Word.” ### Scripture references - Ps 110:3 (109:3 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Luke 2:8: allusion, high confidence - Luke 1:26: allusion, high confidence - Ps 22:9 (21:10 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Rev 22:13: quotation, high confidence - Rev 22:14: quotation, high confidence - Rev 22:15: quotation, high confidence - Rev 22:16: quotation, high confidence - Rev 22:17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “Broaden their robes” (πλατύνοντες) is the text as printed; the usual reading of Rev 22:14 is “wash” (πλύνοντες). “The twenty-first psalm” is Ps 22 (LXX 21); the verse is Ps 22:9 (LXX 21:10). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 28 (Bright, 244–245; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-28). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 29 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-29 - Source: Bright, 245–246 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that, as the Holy Spirit and the Paraclete are one though “Paraclete” is not in the Old Testament, so the Word and the Son are one; and he shows from Homer that “beloved” means “only son.” ### Greek text 29. Ἔστιν ἄρα καὶ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ φανερῶς περὶ Υἱοῦ κείμενα, εἰ καὶ περιττόν ἐστι περὶ τούτων ἀμφισβητεῖν. Εἰ γὰρ τὰ μὴ κείμενα ἐν τῇ παλαιᾶ νεώτερά ἐστι, λεγέτωσαν οἱ οὕτω φιλονεικοῦντες, ποῦ τῆς παλαιᾶς περὶ τοῦ ‘Παρακλήτουʼ Πνεύματος εἴρηται; περὶ Πνεύματος μὲν γὰρ ἁγίου ἐλέχθη, περὶ ‘Παρακλήτουʼ δὲ οὐδαμῶς. Ἆῤ οὖν ἕτερόν ἐστι τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, καὶ ἕτερος ὁ Παράκλητος, καὶ νεώτερος ὁ Παράκλητος, ἐπεὶ μὴ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ κεῖται; Ἀλλὰ μὴ γένοιτο ἢ νεώτερον εἰπεῖν τὸ Πνεῦμα, ἢ διελεῖν καὶ ἕτερον εἰπεῖν τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα, καὶ ἕτερον τὸν Παράκλητον. Ἓν γὰρ καὶ ταὐτόν ἐστι τὸ Πνεῦμα, καὶ τότε καὶ νῦν ἁγιάζον καὶ παρακαλοῦν τοὺς δεκτικοὺς αὐτοῦ· ὡς εἷς καὶ αὐτὸς Λόγος Υἱὸς εἰς υἱοθεσίαν ἄγων καὶ τότε τοὺς ἀξίους. Ἦσαν γὰρ καὶ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ υἱοὶ, οὐ διʼ ἄλλου ἀλλʼ ἢ διὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τεκνοποιούμενοι. Εἰ γὰρ μὴ ἦν καὶ πρὸ τῆς Μαρίας Υἱὸς ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ, πῶς ‘πρὸ πάντωνʼ ἐστὶν, ὄντων πρὸ αὐτοῦ υἱῶν; Πῶς δὲ καὶ ‘πρωτότοκος, δεύτερος μετὰ πολλοὺς εὑρισκόμενος; Ἀλλʼ οὔτε δεύτερος ὁ Παράκλητος· πρὸ πάντων γὰρ ἦν· οὔτε νεώτερος ὁ Υἱός· ‘ἐν ἀρχῇ γὰρ ἦν ὁ Λόγος· ʼ καὶ ὡς ταὐτὸν τὸ Πνεῦμα καὶ Παράκλητος, οὕτω ταὐτὸν ὁ Υἱὸς καὶ Λόγος· καὶ ὥς φησιν ὁ Σωτὴρ περὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος, ‘ὁ δὲ Παράκλητος, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ὃ πέμψει ὁ Πατὴρ ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου, ʼ ταὐτὸν λέγων καὶ οὐ διαιρῶν, οὕτως ὁ Ἰωάννης τὸ ὅμοιον διηγούμενος λέγει, ‘καὶ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν, καὶ ἐθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ Πατρός.᾿ Καὶ ἐνταῦθα γὰρ οὐ διεῖλεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ταυτότητα ἀπήγγειλε. Καὶ οὐχ ὡς ἄλλος Παράκλητος, καὶ ἄλλο τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ἀλλʼ ἓν καὶ ταὐτόν· οὕτως οὐκ ἄλλος Λόγος, καὶ ἄλλος Υἱὸς, ἀλλʼ ὁ Λόγος μονογενής ἐστι. Δόξαν γὰρ οὐκ αὐτῆς εἶπε τῆς σαρκὸς, ἀλλʼ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Λόγου. Ὁ τοίνυν τολμῶν διαιρεῖν Λόγον καὶ Υἱὸν, διαιρείτω καὶ Πνεῦμα καὶ Παράκλητον. Εἰ δὲ ἀδιαίρετον τὸ Πνεῦμα, ἀδιαίρετος καὶ ὁ Λόγος, ὁ αὐτὸς ὢν Υἱὸς, καὶ σοφία, καὶ δύναμις. Τὸ δὲ ‘ἀγαπητὸνʼ καὶ Ἕλληνες ἴσασιν οἱ δεινοὶ περὶ τὰς λέξεις, ὅτι ἴσον ἐστὶ τῷ εἰπεῖν ‘μονογενής. ʼ Φησὶ γὰρ Ὅμηρος ἐπὶ Τηλεμάχου, τοῦ υἱοῦ Ὀδυσσέως μονογενοῦς ὄντος, ταῦτα ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ τῆς Ὀδυσσείας· ‘Τίπτε δέ τοι, φίλε τέκνον, ἐνὶ φρεσὶ τοῦτο νόημα ἔπλετο; πῆ δὲ θέλεις ἰέναι πολλὴν ἐπὶ γαῖαν, μοῦνος ἐὼν ἀγαπητός; ὁ δʼ ὤλετο τηλόθι πάτρης Διογενὴς Ὀδυσεὺς, ἀλλογνώτῳ ἐνὶ δήμῳ.’ Ὁ ἄρα μόνος ὢν τῷ πατρὶ ‘ἀγαπητὸςʼ λέγεται. ### English translation (Claude) 29. So there are statements about the Son plainly in the Old Testament too, although it is superfluous to dispute about these. For if what is not in the Old Testament is later, let those who argue so contentiously say where in the Old Testament the “Paraclete” Spirit is spoken of. For the Holy Spirit is spoken of, but the “Paraclete” nowhere. Is the Holy Spirit, then, one, and the Paraclete another, and the Paraclete later, since he is not in the Old Testament? Far be it either to call the Spirit later, or to divide him and call the Holy Spirit one and the Paraclete another. For the Spirit is one and the same, sanctifying and comforting then and now those who can receive him; just as the Word, the Son, is one and the same, leading the worthy to adoption even then. For there were sons in the Old Testament too, made children through no other than the Son. For if the Son of God did not exist before Mary, how is he “before all things,” when there were sons before him? And how is he “firstborn,” if he is found second after many? But neither is the Paraclete second, for he was before all things; nor is the Son later, for “in the beginning was the Word.” And as the Spirit and the Paraclete are the same, so the Son and the Word are the same. And as the Savior says about the Spirit, “But the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name,” speaking of the same and not dividing, so John, describing the like, says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only-begotten from the Father.” For here too he did not divide, but proclaimed their identity. And just as the Paraclete is not one and the Holy Spirit another, but one and the same, so the Word is not one and the Son another, but the Word is only-begotten. For he spoke of the glory not of the flesh itself, but of the Word himself. So whoever dares to divide Word and Son, let him divide Spirit and Paraclete too. But if the Spirit is undivided, the Word too is undivided, being himself Son, Wisdom, and Power. And even the Greeks, who are clever about words, know that “beloved” is the same as saying “only-begotten.” For Homer, in the second book of the Odyssey, says this of Telemachus, the only son of Odysseus: “Why, dear child, has this thought come into your mind? Where do you want to go over the wide earth, you who are the only beloved one? He has perished far from his homeland, Zeus-born Odysseus, among a strange people.” So one who is his father's only son is called “beloved.” ### Scripture references - Col 1:17: quotation, high confidence - Col 1:15: quotation, high confidence - John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - John 14:26: quotation, high confidence - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence ### Extrabiblical texts - Homer, Od. 2.363 (Homer, Odyssey): quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The Homeric lines are Odyssey 2.363–366, spoken by Eurycleia to Telemachus. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 29 (Bright, 245–246; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-29). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 30 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-30 - Source: Bright, 246–247 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author answers followers of Paul of Samosata who used Acts 10:36 to separate the Word from Christ, arguing that the Word himself, made flesh, preached. ### Greek text 30. Τινὲς τῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ Σαμοσατέως, διαιροῦντες τὸν Λόγον ἀπὸ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, φάσκουσι τὸν μὲν Υἱὸν εἶναι τὸν Χριστὸν, τὸν δὲ Λόγον ἄλλον εἶναι· καὶ τούτου πρόφασιν λαμβάνουσιν ἀπὸ τῶν Πράξεων, ὃ καλῶς μὲν ὁ Πέτρος εἶπεν, αὐτοὶ δὲ κακῶς ἐκδέχονται. Ἒστι δὲ τοῦτο· ‘τὸν Λόγον ἀπέστειλε τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ, εὐαγγελιζόμενος εἰρήνην διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· οὗτός ἐστι πάντων Κύριος.’ Φασὶ γὰρ, ὡς τοῦ Λόγου διὰ Χριστοῦ λαλήσαντος, ὡς καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν προφητῶν, ‘τάδε λέγει Κύριος· ʼ ἄλλος μὲν ἦν ὁ προφήτης, ἄλλος δὲ ὁ Κύριος. Ἀλλὰ πρὸς τοῦτο ὅμοιόν ἐστιν ἀντιτιθέναι τὸ ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ πρὸς Κορινθίους, ‘ἀπεκδεχομένους τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὃς καὶ βεβαιώσει ὑμᾶς ἕως τέλους ἀνεγκλήτους ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.’ Ὡς γὰρ οὐκ ἄλλος Χριστὸς ἑτέρου Χριστοῦ τὴν ἡμέραν βεβαιοῖ, ἀλλʼ αὐτὸς ἐν τῇ ἑαυτοῦ ἡμέρᾳ βεβαιοῖ τοὺς ἀπεκδεχομένους, οὕτω τὸν Λόγον ἀπέστειλεν ὁ Πατὴρ σάρκα γενόμενον, ἵνα διʼ ἑαυτοῦ ἄνθρωπος γενόμενος κηρύξῃ. Εὐθέως γοῦν ἐπάγει, ‘οὖτός ἐστι πάντων Κύριος·’ Κύριος δὲ πάντων ὁ Λόγος ἐστί. ### English translation (Claude) 30. Some of the followers of the Samosatene, dividing the Word from the Son, claim that the Son is Christ, but the Word is another. They take their pretext for this from the Acts, from what Peter said rightly but they interpret wrongly. It is this: “He sent the word to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ; he is Lord of all.” For they say that the Word spoke through Christ as through the prophets, “Thus says the Lord”: the prophet was one, and the Lord another. But against this one may set, in like manner, what is in the first letter to the Corinthians: “as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” For just as it is not one Christ who confirms the day of another Christ, but he himself on his own day confirms those who wait for him, so the Father sent the Word become flesh, so that, having become man, he might preach through himself. At once, then, it adds, “he is Lord of all”; and the Lord of all is the Word. ### Scripture references - Acts 10:36: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 1:7: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 1:8: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “The Samosatene” is Paul of Samosata, bishop of Antioch, condemned ca. 268, who was held to teach that Christ was a man indwelt by the Word, not the Word himself incarnate. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 30 (Bright, 246–247; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-30). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 31 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-31 - Source: Bright, 247 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author uses Moses' speaking of himself in the third person (Lev 9:7) to show that Peter's words do not make the Word and Christ two, and says that separating them betrays a pagan idea of the incarnation as change. ### Greek text 31. Καὶ εἶπε Μωσῆς πρὸς Ἀαρὼν, ‘Πρόσελθε πρὸς τὸ θυσιαστήριον, καὶ ποίησον τὸ περὶ τῆς ἁμαρτίας σου, καὶ τὸ ὁλοκαύτωμά σου, καὶ ἐξίλασαι περὶ σεαυτοῦ καὶ τοῦ οἴκου σου, καὶ ποίησον τὰ δῶρα τοῦ λαοῦ, καὶ ἐξίλασαι περὶ αὐτῶν, καθάπερ ἐνετείλατο Κύριος τῷ Μωσεῖ.’ Ἰδοὺ τοίνυν ἐνταῦθα, καίπερ ἑνὸς ὄντος τοῦ Μωσέως, ὡς περὶ ἑτέρου Μωσέως αὐτὸς Μωσῆς λέγων ἐστὶ, ‘καθάπερ ἐνετείλατο Κύριος τῷ Μωσεῖ.’ Οὕτω τοίνυν καὶ περὶ τοῦ θείου Λόγου ἐὰν λέγῃ ὁ μακάριος Πέτρος, ‘ἀποσταλέντος τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ’ οὐ χρὴ ἕτερον μὲν τὸν Λόγον, ἕτερον δὲ Χριστὸν νοεῖν, ἀλλʼ ἕνα καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν διὰ τὴν ἕνωσιν τὴν πρὸς τὴν θείαν αὐτοῦ καὶ φιλάνθρωπον συγκατάβασίν τε καὶ ἐνανθρώπησιν. Εἰ δὲ καὶ νοοῖτο διχῶς, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὡς τοῦ Λόγου κεχωρισμένου, κατὰ τὸν θεσπέσιον Ἰωάννην, ‘καὶ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, ’ εἰρηκότα, ‘καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν. Τὸ ἄρα καλῶς καὶ ὀρθῶς εἰρημένον πρὸς τοῦ μακαρίου Πέτρου κακῶς καὶ στρεβλῶς νοοῦντες οἱ τοῦ Σαμοσατέως, ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ οὐχ ἵστανται. ‘Χριστὸς γὰρ τὸ συναμφότερον νοεῖται παρὰ τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ, ὡς ὅταν λέγῃ, ‘Χριστὸς Θεοῦ δύναμις, καὶ Θεοῦ σοφία.’ Εἰ τοίνυν λέγει ὁ Πέτρος τὸν Λόγον διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἀπεστάλθαι τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ, ’ τοῦτο σημαίνων νοείσθω, τὸν Λόγον σαρκωθέντα τοῖς υἱοῖς Ἰσραὴλ πεφανερῶσθαι, ἵνʼ ᾖ συνᾴδων τῷ ‘καὶ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο.’ Εἰ δὲ ἑτέρως ἐκεῖνο νοοῦσι, καὶ τὸν Λόγον μὲν, καθὼς καὶ ἔστι, θεῖον ὁμολογοῦντες, τὸν πρὸς αὐτοῦ ληφθέντα, ᾧ καὶ ἡνῶσθαι πιστεύεται, ἄνθρωπον ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ χωρίζουσι, λέγοντες ‘διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦʼ αὐτὸν ἀπεστάλθαι, ἑαυτοῖς ἐναντία φθεγγόμενοι οὐ νοοῦσιν. Οἱ γὰρ, ἐνταῦθα χωρίζοντες τῆς θείας σαρκώσεως, θεῖον νοοῦσι, σμικρύνουσιν ἄρα ἀκούοντεσ αὐτὸν ‘σάρκα γεγενῆσθαι, ’ καὶ Ἑλλήνων φρονοῦσιν, ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ φρονοῦσι, τροπὴν τοῦ Λόγου τὴν σάρκωσιν τὴν θείαν ὑπολαμβάνοντες. ### English translation (Claude) 31. “And Moses said to Aaron, Go to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for your house; and offer the gifts of the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord commanded Moses.” See here: although Moses is one, Moses himself speaks as if about another Moses: “as the Lord commanded Moses.” So too, if the blessed Peter says of the divine Word that he was “sent to the sons of Israel through Jesus Christ,” one must not think that the Word is one and Christ another, but that they are one and the same, because of the union in his divine and loving condescension and becoming man. And even if he is thought of in two ways, it is not as though the Word were separated, as the inspired John said, “And the Word became flesh,” and “dwelt among us.” So the followers of the Samosatene, understanding wrongly and crookedly what was said well and rightly by the blessed Peter, do not stand in the truth. For “Christ” is understood in divine Scripture as both together, as when it says, “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” If, then, Peter says that the Word “was sent to the sons of Israel through Jesus Christ,” let it be understood to mean that the incarnate Word was made manifest to the sons of Israel, so that it may agree with “And the Word became flesh.” But if they understand it otherwise, and, while confessing the Word to be divine, as he is, separate from him the man assumed by him, with whom he is believed to be united, saying that he was sent “through Jesus Christ,” they do not see that they contradict themselves. For those who here separate the divine from the divine incarnation belittle it, then, when they hear that he “became flesh,” and think like pagans, as indeed they do, supposing the divine incarnation to be a change of the Word. ### Scripture references - Lev 9:7: quotation, high confidence - Acts 10:36: quotation, high confidence - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 1:24: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The last sentence is compressed in the Greek; its sense is that those who separate the Word from the man do so because they think becoming flesh would degrade or change the Word. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 31 (Bright, 247; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-31). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 32 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-32 - Source: Bright, 248 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author appeals to the annunciation (Luke 1:35) to show that the Word is united to the man born of Mary, so that the Word was not sent through another but himself sent the apostles. ### Greek text 32. Ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔστι τοῦτο, μὴ γένοιτο· ὃν τρόπον γὰρ ἐνταῦθα τὴν ἀνέκφραστον ἕνωσιν ὁ Ἰωάννης κηρύσσει, ‘καταποθέντος τοῦ θνητοῦ ὑπὸ τῆς ζωῆς, ʼ καὶ αὐτοζωῆς ὄντος, καθὰ πρὸς τὴν Μάρθαν ὁ Κύριος ἔφη, ‘Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ζωή·᾿ οὕτω καὶ ὅταν λέγῃ ὁ μακάριος Πέτρος τὸ ‘διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἀπεστάλθαι τὸν Λόγον, ’ τὴν θείαν ἕνωσιν σημαίνει. Ὡς γὰρ ἀκούων τις τὸ ‘ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, ʼ οὐκ ἂν νομίσοι μηκέτι οὖν εἶναι Λόγον, ὅπερ ἄτοπον, ὡς προείρηται· οὕτω καὶ Λόγον ἀκούων τὸν συναφθέντα τῇ σαρκὶ, τὸ θεῖον ἓν καὶ ἁπλοῦν νοείτω μυστήριον. Σαφέστερον δὲ καὶ ἀναμφισβήτητον παντὸς λογισμοῦ τὸ πρὸς αὐτὴν τὴν Θεοτόκον πρὸς τοῦ ἀρχαγγέλου ῥηθὲν τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ θείου Λόγου καὶ ἀνθρώπου δείξειε. Φησὶ γὰρ, ‘Πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἐπελεύσεται ἐπὶ σὲ, καὶ δύναμις ὑψίστου ἐπισκιάσει σοι· διὸ καὶ τὸ γεννώμενον ἅγιον κληθήσεται Υἱὸς Θεοῦ, ᾿ Ἀφρόνως οὖν οἱ τοῦ Σαμοσατέως τὸν Λόγον χωρίζουσι, σαφῶς ἀποδειχθέντα ἡνῶσθαι τῷ ἐκ Μαρίας ἀνθρώπῳ. Οὐκ ἄρα ἀπεστάλη διʼ αὐτοῦ· ἀπέστελλε δὲ ἐν αὐτῷ, λέγων· ‘Πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. ʼ ### English translation (Claude) 32. But this is not so, far from it! For just as John here proclaims the inexpressible union, “the mortal being swallowed up by life,” and by life itself, as the Lord said to Martha, “I am the life,” so also when the blessed Peter says that “the Word was sent through Jesus Christ,” he signifies the divine union. For as one who hears “the Word became flesh” would not think that there was no longer a Word, which is absurd, as has been said, so one who hears of the Word joined to the flesh should understand the divine mystery as one and simple. More clearly, and beyond all reasoning, what was said by the archangel to the God-bearer herself would show the unity of the divine Word and the man. For he says, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the holy one who is born will be called Son of God.” Senselessly, then, do the followers of the Samosatene separate the Word, who has been clearly shown to be united to the man from Mary. So he was not sent through him; rather he sent in him, saying, “Go and make disciples of all nations.” ### Scripture references - 2 Cor 5:4: quotation, high confidence - John 11:25: quotation, high confidence - Acts 10:36: allusion, high confidence - John 1:14: quotation, high confidence - Luke 1:35: quotation, high confidence - Matt 28:19: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “God-bearer” renders Θεοτόκος, the title of Mary later confirmed at the Council of Ephesus (431). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 32 (Bright, 248; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-32). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 33 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-33 - Source: Bright, 248–249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author argues that Scripture speaks simply, as when Moses is named twice in one sentence, and that the Word, united to our humanity, rightly bears the names Christ and Son, and is not a prophet sent through a man. ### Greek text 33. Ἔθος δὲ τοῦτο τῇ γραφῇ, ἀπεριέργως καὶ ἁπλῶς τὰς λέξεις ἐκφράζειν· οὕτω γὰρ καὶ ἐν τοῖς Ἀριθμοῖς τις εὑρήσει· ‘εἶπεʼ γὰρ, φησὶ, ‘Μωσῆς τῷ ‘Ραγουὴλ τῷ Μαδιανίτῃ, γαμβρῷ Μωσῇʼ Οὐ γὰρ ἄλλος Μωσῆς ὁ λέγων, καὶ ἄλλος οὗ ἦν γαμβρὸς ὁ Ῥαγουὴλ. ἀλλὰ εἰς ἦν Μωσῆς. Εἰ γὰρ ὁ Λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ σοφία ὁμοίως χρηματίζει καὶ δύναμις, καὶ δεξιὰ, καὶ βραχίων, καὶ ὅσα τοιαῦτα· ἥνωται δὲ φιλανθρώπως ἡμῖν, τὴν ἀπαρχὴν ἡμῶν περιθέμενος, καὶ ταύτῃ ἀνακραθεὶς, ἄρα αὐτὸς ὁ Λόγος καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ εἰκότως εἴληχεν ὀνόματα. Τὸ γὰρ εἰρηκέναι τὸν Ἰωάννην ‘ἐν ἀρχῇ μὲν εἶναι τὸν Λόγον, καὶ τοῦτον πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ αὐτὸν Θεὸν, καὶ πάντα διʼ αὐτοῦ, καὶ χωρὶς αὐτοῦ γεγενῆσθαι μηδὲν, ’ πλάσμα τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου σαφῶς καὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον δείκνυσιν ὑπάρχειν. Εἰ τοίνυν τοῦτον σαθρωθέντα εἰς ἑαυτὸν λαβόμενος, πάλιν ἀνακαινίζει διὰ τῆς βεβαίας αὐτοῦ ἀνανεώσεως πρὸς διαμονὴν ἀτελεύτητον, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἑνοῦται, εἰς θειοτέραν ἀνάγων αὐτὸν λῆξιν, πῶς οἷόν τε λέγειν διὰ τοῦ ἐκ Μαρίας ἀνθρώπου τὸν Λόγον ἀπεστάλθαι, καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς ἀποστόλοις, λέγω δὴ προφήταις, ἀποσταλεῖσι παρʼ αὐτοῦ συναριθμεῖν τὸν τῶν ἀποστόλων Κύριον; πῶς δὲ καὶ κληθείη Χριστὸς ψιλὸς ἄνθρωπος; Ἡνωμένος δὲ τῷ Λόγῳ, εἰκότως χρηματίζοι Χριστὸς, καὶ Υἱὸς Θεοῦ, ἄνωθεν τοῦ προφήτου σαφῶς ἐκβοήσαντος τὴν πατρικὴν ὑπόστασιν περὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἰπόντος, καὶ ἀποστελῶ τὸν Υἱόν μου τόν Χριστόν· ʼ καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ, ‘Οὔτός ἐστιν ὁ Υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός.᾿ Ἐκπληρώσας γὰρ τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν, εἰκότως ὑπέδειξεν ὡς οὗτός ἐστιν, ὃν εἶπεν ἀποστεῖλαι. ### English translation (Claude) 33. It is the custom of Scripture to express its words without elaboration and simply. So one will find it in Numbers too: for it says, “Moses said to Raguel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law.” For the Moses who speaks is not one and the Moses whose father-in-law Raguel was another; Moses was one. For if the Word of God is likewise called Wisdom, and Power, and Right Hand, and Arm, and all such things, and he has been united to us in love for mankind, putting on our first-fruits and blending himself with it, then the Word himself has fittingly received the other names too. For John's saying that “in the beginning was the Word, and he was with God, and was himself God, and all things were through him, and without him nothing came to be,” clearly shows that man too is a creature formed by God the Word. If, then, taking him into himself when he had decayed, he renews him again by his sure renewal for endless permanence, and for this reason is united to him, raising him to a more divine lot, how can one say that the Word was sent through the man from Mary, and count the Lord of the apostles with the other apostles, I mean the prophets, sent by him? And how could Christ be called a mere man? Rather, being united to the Word, he is fittingly called Christ and Son of God, since the prophet long ago clearly proclaimed the Father's own hypostasis concerning him and said, “And I will send my Son, the Christ”; and at the Jordan, “This is my beloved Son.” For having fulfilled the promise, he fittingly showed that this is the one he said he would send. ### Scripture references - Num 10:29: quotation, high confidence - John 1:1: quotation, high confidence - John 1:2: quotation, high confidence - John 1:3: quotation, high confidence - Luke 20:13: allusion, low confidence - Matt 3:17: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The Numbers passage is Num 10:29. The prophetic quotation “And I will send my Son, the Christ” is unidentified; it resembles Mark 12:6 and Luke 20:13 (“I will send my beloved son”). ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 33 (Bright, 248–249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-33). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 34 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-34 - Source: Bright, 249 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author teaches that Christ is the divine Word united with the humanity formed in Mary, the true temple of which Solomon's was an image, and calls Paul of Samosata a disciple of those who objected that Jesus made himself God. ### Greek text 34. Τὸ τοίνυν συναμφότερον νοῶμεν Χριστὸν, Λόγον τὸν θεῖον ἡνωμένον τῷ ἐκ Μαρίας ἐν τῇ Μαρίᾳ. Ἐν γὰρ τῇ ταύτης νηδύϊ ὁ Λόγος ἑαυτῷ τὸν οἶκον διεπλάσατο, ὃν τρόπον ἐξ ἀρχῆς τὸν Ἀδὰμ ἐκ τῆς γῆς· μᾶλλον δὲ θειοτέρως, περὶ οὗ καὶ Σολομών φησι, τὸν Λόγον εἰδὼς καὶ ‘σοφίανʼ χρηματίζουσαν φανερῶς· ‘Ἡ σοφία ᾠκοδόμησεν ἑαυτῇ οἶκον· ʼ ὃν καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολος ἑρμηνεύων λέγει, ‘οὗ οἶκός ἐσμεν ἡμεῖς·᾿ καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ δὲ ‘ναὸνʼ προσαγορεύει, καθότι πρέπον Θεῷ ἐν ναῷ κατοικεῖν, οὗ καὶ εἰκόνα τὴν ἐκ λίθων τοῖς παλαιοῖς κτίζειν διὰ Σολομῶντος προσέταξεν· ὅθεν τῆς ἀληθείας φανείσης, πέπαυται ἡ εἰκών. Βουληθεῖσι γὰρ τοῖς ἀγνώμοσι τὴν εἰκόνα δεῖξαι ἀλήθειαν, τὴν δὲ ἀληθῆ οἴκησιν, ἣν καὶ ἕνωσιν σαφῶς πιστεύομεν, καθελεῖν, οὐκ ἠπείλησεν, ἀλλʼ εἰδὼς ὡς αὐτοὶ καθʼ ἑαυτῶν τολμῶσι, φησὶν αὐτοῖς, ‘Λύσατε τὸν ναὸν τοῦτον, καὶ ἐν τρισὶν ἡμέραις ἐγερῶ αὐτόν· ʼ σαφῶς δεικνὺς ὁ ἡμέτερος Σωτὴρ, ὡς τὰ πρὸς ἀνθρώπων σπουδαζόμενα αὐτόθεν ἔχει τὴν διάλυσιν. ‘Ἐὰν γὰρ μὴ Κύριος οἰκοδομήσῃ οἶκον, καὶ φυλάξῃ πόλιν, εἰς μάτην ἐκοπίασαν οἱ οἰκοδομοῦντες, καὶ ἠγρύπνησαν οἱ φυλάσσοντες.᾿ Τὰ τοίνυν τῶν Ἰουδαίων λέλυται· σκιὰ γὰρ ἦν· τὰ δὲ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἥδρασται· ‘τεθεμελίωται γὰρ ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν, ʼ ‘καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.᾿ Ἐκείνων ἦν τὸ λέγειν, ‘Πῶς σὺ, ἄνθρωπος ὢν, ποιεῖς σεαυτὸν Θεόν;᾿ τούτων μαθητὴς ὁ Σαμοσατεὺς ὑπάρχει· ὅθεν εἰκότως τὰ παρʼ αὐτοῦ τοῖς αὐτοῦ ἀπαγγέλλει. ‘Ἀλλʼ ἡμεῖς οὐχ οὕτως ἐμάθομεν τὸν Χριστὸν, εἴγε αὐτὸν ἠκούσαμεν, καὶ παρʼ αὐτοῦ ἐδιδάχθημεν, ἀποθέμενοι τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν φθειρόμενον κατὰ τὰς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ἀπάτης, ἀναλαβόντες δὲ τὸν νέον τὸν κατὰ Θεὸν κτισθέντα ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ὁσιότητι τῆς ἀληθείας Χριστὸς τοιγαροῦν τὸ συναμφότερον εὐσεβῶς νοείσθω. ### English translation (Claude) 34. Let us then understand Christ as both together: the divine Word united, in Mary, with the one from Mary. For in her womb the Word formed a house for himself, as in the beginning he formed Adam from the earth, or rather more divinely. Of this Solomon too speaks, knowing that the Word is plainly called “wisdom”: “Wisdom has built herself a house”; which the apostle interprets, saying, “whose house we are”; and elsewhere he calls it a “temple,” since it is fitting for God to dwell in a temple, of which he commanded the ancients, through Solomon, to build an image of stone; so when the truth appeared, the image ceased. For when the unfeeling men wished to show the image to be the truth, and to destroy the true dwelling, which we clearly believe to be the union, he did not threaten them; but knowing that they were daring against themselves, he says to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up,” our Savior clearly showing that what men busy themselves with carries its own dissolution. “For unless the Lord builds the house and guards the city, the builders have labored in vain and the watchmen have kept watch in vain.” So the things of the Jews have been undone, for they were a shadow; but the things of the church are firmly founded: “for it has been founded on the rock,” “and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.” It was theirs to say, “How do you, being a man, make yourself God?” and the Samosatene is their disciple; hence he naturally reports their views to his own followers. “But we did not so learn Christ, if indeed we have heard him and been taught by him, putting off the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful desires, and putting on the new, created after God in righteousness and holiness of truth.” So let Christ be reverently understood as both together. ### Scripture references - Prov 9:1: quotation, high confidence - Heb 3:6: quotation, high confidence - 1 Cor 3:16: allusion, medium confidence - 1 Kgs 6:1: allusion, medium confidence - John 2:19: quotation, high confidence - Ps 127:1 (126:1 LXX): quotation, high confidence - Col 2:17: echo, medium confidence - Matt 7:25: quotation, high confidence - Matt 16:18: quotation, high confidence - John 10:33: quotation, high confidence - Eph 4:20: quotation, high confidence - Eph 4:21: quotation, high confidence - Eph 4:22: quotation, high confidence - Eph 4:24: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The contrast between the Jewish temple as “shadow” and the church is the author's own, translated as written. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 34 (Bright, 249; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-34). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 35 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-35 - Source: Bright, 250–251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author shows that Scripture calls the man from Mary “Christ” because of his union with the Word, and that the risen Lord's words “touch me” prove that the Word and his body are one subject. ### Greek text 35. Εἰ δὲ καὶ τὸ σῶμα καλεῖ πολλαχοῦ ἡ γραφὴ ‘Χριστὸν, ’ ὡς ὅταν λέγῃ ὁ μακάριος Πέτρος πρὸς Κορνήλιον, διδάσκων ‘Ἰησοῦν τὸν ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ, ὃν ἔχρισεν ὁ Θεὸς Πνεύματι ἁγίῳ·’ καὶ πάλιν πρὸς Ἰουδαίους, ‘Ἰησοῦν τὸν ἀπὸ Ναζαρὲτ, ἄνδρα ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀποδεδειγμένον εἰς ὑμᾶς·’ καὶ πάλιν ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος πρὸς Ἀθηναίους, ‘ἐν ἀνδρὶ ᾧ ὥρισε, πίστιν παρασχὼν πᾶσιν, ἀναστήσας αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν·’ ταὐτὸν δὲ τῇ χρίσει πολλαχόσε τὴν ἀνάδειξιν καὶ τὴν ἀποστολὴν εὑρίσκομεν· ἐξ ὧν μανθάνειν ἔξεστι τῷ βουλομένῳ, ὡς οὐ διαφωνία τις ἐν τοῖς ῥήμασι τῶν ἀγίων, ἀλλὰ διαφόρως τὴν πρὸς τὸν ἐκ Μαρίας ἄνθρωπον τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου ἕνωσιν γενομένην ὀνομάζουσι ποτὲ μὲν χρίσιν, ’ ποτὲ δὲ ‘ἀποστολὴν, ’ ἄλλοτε δὲ ‘ἀνάδειξιν. Τὸ τοίνυν λεγόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ μακαρίου Πέτρου ὀρθὸν, καὶ εἰλικρινῆ τὴν θεότητα τοῦ μονογενοῦς κηρύσσει, οὐ τὴν ὑπόστασιν χωρίζον τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐκ Μαρίας ανθρώπου· (μὴ) γένοιτο· πῶς γὰρ ὁ ἀκούσας πολλαχῶς τὸ ‘ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν, ’ καὶ ‘ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ. ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα;’) διʼ οὗ καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάστασιν, τὸ αὐτὸ, ‘κεκλεισμένων· τῶν θυρῶν, ’ εἰσερχόμενον πρὸς πᾶσαν τῶν ἀποστόλων τὴν ξυνωρίδα, καὶ εἴ τι παρῆν ἐκ τούτου δυσπειθὲς, διαλύσαντα τῷ εἰπεῖν, ‘ψηλαφήσατέ με, καὶ βλέπετε, ὅτι πνεῦμα σάρκα καὶ ὀστέα οὐκ ἔχει, καθὼς ἐμὲ θεωρεῖτε ἔχοντα ’ καὶ οὐκ εἶπε, ‘τόνδε, ’ ἢ, ‘τὸν ἄνθρωπόν μου, ὃν ἀνείληφα, ’ ἀλλʼ ‘ἐμέ.’ Ὅθεν οὐδεμίαν συγγνώμην εὑρεῖν δυνήσεται ὁ Σαμοσατεὺς. ἐκ τοσούτων τὴν ἕνωσιν τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου διελεγχθείς· καὶ ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου, ἄρτι μὲν πρὸς πάντας τὴν πεῦσιν προσάγοντος, καὶ πληροφορῶν ἀπό τε τοῦ φαγεῖν καὶ τὴν ψηλάφησιν ἐπιτρέψαι, ἣ δὴ καὶ γεγένηται. Πάντως γὰρ ὁ διδοὺς τὴν τροφὴν, ἢ οἱ διδόντες, ἥψαντο τῶν χειρῶν. ‘Ἐπέδωκανʼ γὰρ, φησὶν, ‘αὐτῷ ἰχθύος ἀπτοῦ μέρος, καὶ ἀπὸ μελισσίου κηρίου· καὶ φαγὼν ἐνώπιον αὐτῶν, ’ λαβὼν τὰ ἐπίλοιπα, ἀπέδωκεν αὐτοῖς. Ἰδοὺ τοίνυν, εἰ καὶ οὐχ ὡς ὁ Θωμᾶς, ἀλλʼ ὅμως διʼ ἑτέρας μεθόδου, τὴν πληροφορίαν αὐτοῖς παρέσχε ψηλαφηθείς. Εἰ δὲ καὶ τοὺς μώλωπας ἰδεῖν θέλοις, παρὰ Θωμᾶ μάθε· ‘Φέρεʼ γάρ ‘σου, ’ φησὶ, ‘τὴν χεῖρα καὶ βάλε εἰς τὴν πλευράν μου, καὶ φέρε τὸν δάκτυλόν σου, καὶ βλέπε τὰς χεῖράς μου.’ Πλευρὰν ἰδίαν καὶ χεῖρας ὀνομάζων ὁ Θεὸς Λόγος, καὶ ὅλον αὐτὸν ἄνθρωπόν τε καὶ Θεὸν ὁμοῦ, ἄρτι μὲν τοῦ Λόγου καὶ τὴν αἴσθησιν τοῖς ἀγίοις διὰ σώματος, ὡς ἔστι νοεῖν, παρέχοντος τῷ εἰσελθεῖν ‘τῶν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων, ’ παρευθὺ δὲ σὺν τῷ σώματι παρεστὼς, καὶ τὴν πληροφορίαν παρέχων. Ταῦτα τοῖς πιστοῖς εἰς βεβαίωσιν, καὶ τοῖς ἀπίστοις εἰς διόρθωσιν εἰρήσθω συμμέτρως. ### English translation (Claude) 35. And if Scripture often calls the body too “Christ,” as when the blessed Peter says to Cornelius, teaching him about “Jesus of Nazareth, whom God anointed with the Holy Spirit”; and again to the Jews, “Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God”; and again the blessed Paul to the Athenians, “by a man whom he has appointed, having given assurance to all by raising him from the dead” (and we often find the appointing and the sending to be the same as the anointing; from which anyone who wishes can learn that there is no disagreement in the words of the saints, but that they name the union of God the Word with the man from Mary in different ways, sometimes “anointing,” sometimes “sending,” at other times “appointing”), then what was said by the blessed Peter is right, and proclaims purely the Godhead of the only-begotten, not separating the hypostasis of God the Word from the man from Mary. Far from it! For how could he, who had heard so often “I and the Father are one” and “He who has seen me has seen the Father”? Through this same man, after the resurrection too, he came in “when the doors were shut” to the whole company of the apostles, and removed any unbelief that remained by saying, “Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have.” And he did not say “this one,” or “the man of mine whom I have assumed,” but “me.” Therefore the Samosatene will be able to find no pardon, refuted by so many proofs of the union of God the Word, and by God the Word himself, who then put the question to all, and gave full assurance by eating and by allowing himself to be touched, which indeed happened. For certainly whoever gives food, or those who give it, touch hands. “For they gave him,” it says, “a piece of broiled fish and some honeycomb; and having eaten before them,” he took what was left and gave it back to them. See, then: even if not as with Thomas, yet by another way he gave them full assurance by being touched. And if you want to see the wounds, learn from Thomas: “Bring your hand,” he says, “and put it into my side; and bring your finger and see my hands.” God the Word names the side and hands as his own, and himself as wholly man and God together: at one moment the Word giving the saints perception through the body, as one may understand, by coming in “when the doors were shut,” and at once standing by with the body and giving full assurance. Let this be said in due measure for the confirmation of the faithful and the correction of the unbelieving. ### Scripture references - Acts 10:38: quotation, high confidence - Acts 2:22: quotation, high confidence - Acts 17:31: quotation, high confidence - John 10:30: quotation, high confidence - John 14:9: quotation, high confidence - John 20:19: quotation, high confidence - John 20:26: allusion, high confidence - Luke 24:39: quotation, high confidence - Luke 24:42: quotation, high confidence - Luke 24:43: quotation, high confidence - John 20:27: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - “Some honeycomb” is in some manuscripts of Luke 24:42 but not in the earliest. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 35 (Bright, 250–251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-35). ## Oration IV Against the Arians 36 - URL: https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-36 - Source: Bright, 251 - Translation: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 Summary: The author concludes that the “sending” of the Word means his union with the man Jesus: God the Word is himself the Christ from Mary, one and the same, God and man. ### Greek text 36. Διορθούσθω τοιγαροῦν καὶ Παῦλος Σαμοσατεὺς, τῆς θείας κατήκοος γεγενημένος φωνῆς, ‘τὸ σῶμά μου, ʼ λέγοντος, καὶ οὐχὶ ‘τὸν Χριστὸν ἕτερον παρʼ ἐμὲ τὸν Λόγον, ʼ ἀλλὰ ‘σὺν ἐμοὶ αὐτὸν, καὶ ἐμὲ σὺν αὐτῷ. Τὸ γὰρ χρίσμα ἐγὼ ὁ Λόγος, τὸ δὲ χρισθὲν ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ ὁ ἄνθρωπος· οὐ χωρὶς οὖν ἐμοῦ Χριστὸς κληθείη ἂν, ἀλλὰ σὺν ἐμοὶ ὢν καὶ ἐμοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ.᾿ Τὸ τοίνυν ‘ἀποστολὴνʼ τοῦ Λόγου σημαίνεσθαι, ἕνωσιν δηλοῖ τὴν πρὸς τὸν ἐκ Μαρίας Ἰησοῦν, ὃς ἑρμηνεύεται Σωτὴρ, οὐ διʼ ἕτερόν τι, ἀλλʼ ἢ διὰ τὸ τῷ Θεῷ Λόγῳ ἡνῶσθαι. Ταὐτὸ σημαίνεται τὸ ῥητὸν τοῦτο τῷ ‘ὁ πέμψας με Πατὴρ, ᾿ καὶ, ‘ἀπʼ ἐμαυτοῦ οὐκ ἐλήλυθα, ἀλλʼ ὁ Πατήρ με ἀπέστειλε.᾿ Τὴν γὰρ πρὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἕνωσιν, σὺν γνωρισθῆναι ἀνθρώποις ἦν δυνατὸν τὴν ἀόρατον φύσιν διὰ τῆς ὁρωμένης, ‘ἀποστολὴνʼ ὠνόμασεν. Οὐ γὰρ δὴ Θεὸς τόπους ἀμείβει, καθʼ ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἐν τόποις κρυπτομένους, τῷ τῆς μικρότητος ἡμῶν σχήματι τῆς ὑπάρξεως τῆς ἐν σαρκὶ ἐπιδεικνύμενος· πῶς γὰρ ὁ ‘τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν πληρῶν; ʼ ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐν σαρκὶ παρουσίας ἕνεκα τὴν ‘ἀποστολὴνʼ οἱ δίκαιοι ὠνόμασαν. Εἶτα οὖν καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Θεὸς Λόγος Χριστὸς οὖν ὁ ἐκ Μαρίας, Θεὸς ἄνθρωπος· οὐχ ἕτερός τις Χριστὸς, ἀλλʼ εἷς καὶ ὁ αὐτός· οὗτος πρὸ αἰώνων ἐκ Πατρός, οὗτος ἐπʼ ἐσχάτων ἐκ τῆς παρθένου· ἀόρατος τὸ πρὶν καὶ ταῖς ἐν οὐρανῷ δυνάμεσιν ἁγίαις, ὁρατὸς νυνὶ διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὸν ὁρώμενον ἄνθρωπον ἕνωσιν· ὁρώμενος δὲ, φημὶ, οὐ τῇ ἀοράτῳ θεότητι, ἀλλὰ τῇ τῆς θεότητος ἐνεργείᾳ διὰ τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου σώματος καὶ ὅλου ἀνθρώπου, ὃν ἀνεκαίνισε τῇ οἰκειώσει τῇ πρὸς ἑαυτόν. Αὐτῷ τὸ σέβας καὶ ἡ προσκύνησις, ὃς ἦν πρώην, καὶ νῦν, καὶ ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας. Ἀμήν. ### English translation (Claude) 36. So let Paul of Samosata too be corrected, having heard the divine voice saying “my body,” and not “the Christ, another besides me, the Word,” but “he with me, and I with him. For I, the Word, am the anointing, and the one anointed by me is the man; so he could not be called Christ without me, but being with me and I in him.” So the mention of the “sending” of the Word signifies the union with Jesus born of Mary, whose name means Savior, for no other reason than his being united to God the Word. This text means the same as “the Father who sent me,” and, “I have not come of myself, but the Father sent me.” For he called the union with the man, by which it was possible for the invisible nature to be made known to men through the visible, a “sending.” For God does not change places, as we do who are hidden in places, when he shows himself in the small form of our existence in the flesh; for how could he, who “fills heaven and earth”? But the righteous called it a “sending” because of his coming in the flesh. So God the Word himself is the Christ from Mary, God and man; not some other Christ, but one and the same. He is from the Father before the ages; he is from the virgin in the last days; invisible before even to the holy powers in heaven, now visible because of his union with the man who is seen. Seen, I mean, not in his invisible Godhead, but by the activity of the Godhead through the human body and the whole man, whom he renewed by making him his own. To him be reverence and worship, who was before, and is now, and always, and to the ages. Amen. ### Scripture references - Matt 26:26: allusion, low confidence - Matt 1:21: allusion, high confidence - John 5:37: quotation, high confidence - John 8:42: quotation, high confidence - Jer 23:24: quotation, high confidence ### Translation notes - The words given as the Lord's (“he with me, and I with him…”) are the author's paraphrase, not a Scripture quotation. “Whose name means Savior” refers to Matt 1:21. ### Citation (SBL) Pseudo-Athanasius, C. Ar. 36 (Bright, 251; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athanasius-oratio-4/25/#p-36).