返回Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Chapter One
1 John 1:1. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our own eyes.
He says this both to the Jews and to the pagans, who disparage the mystery of our salvation as something recent. The Apostle shows that it is also ancient, for it is from the beginning and contemporaneous with the beginning conceived in the mind, or that it is more ancient not only than the law, but even than the visible creation itself, for creation had a beginning, but it existed even before the very beginning. For what can anyone say about the pagan mysteries, which appeared yesterday and the day before? They, accompanied by debauchery, arose late, at a time when impurity already dwelt in people, which that debauchery serves as a crowning point and monument, and through which we descended from a good state into the darkest night. Presenting the greatness of our mystery in its comparative antiquity, the Apostle adds that it is also Life — Life not measured by a span of time, but self-existent, as always being with the Father, as it is also said in the Gospel: "and the Word was with God" (John 1:1). The word "was" signifies not a temporal existence, but the self-existent being of a known subject, the origin and foundation of everything that received being, such that without it the latter could not have come into being. Although it is said of every created being that it is — for example, there is an angel, there is a heaven, there is a sun, and so forth — yet properly and perfectly only the Son alone is, through Whose participation all things come into being. Therefore Paul also says: "in Him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). He who previously heard about this from the initial teaching passes on to the seeing of Him, not bodily but intellectually, and not with bodily eyes but with mental ones. "Handled" is said of the Word of Life, Who said: "I am the life" (John 14:6). Perhaps it is said this way also about the Word existing in the beginning, because we heard from the law and the prophets that It would come. When It came openly with flesh, we saw It and handled It. For God, as He is in Himself, "no one has ever seen" (John 1:18). And we attached ourselves to the Word that appeared not carelessly, but, as already said, after handling, that is, after investigation in the law and the prophets we believed in the Word that appeared in the flesh. We saw and handled not what It "was" (for "who shall declare His generation?" (Isaiah 53:8)), but what It "became," and we handled It both by mental touch and at the same time by sensory touch, as, for example, Thomas did after the resurrection. For He was One and undivided, One and the Same — visible and invisible, containable and uncontainable, untouchable and tangible, speaking as a man and working miracles as God. So we speak of the Word on account of the most intimate union of God with the flesh.
1 John 1:1-2. What we beheld and what our hands handled, concerning the Word of life — For the life was manifested, and we have seen and bear witness, and declare unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested unto us.
"Beheld" means the same as saw with one's own eyes and marveled; for θεάσασθαι derives from θαυμάζειν and means: to look with wonder. "Handled" means the same as examined. The connection of the discourse is as follows: that which was from the beginning, which we heard, and saw, and beheld with our eyes, and which our hands handled concerning the Word of life, which was manifested, and which we saw, and bear witness to, and declare unto you, that is, the eternal life which is with the Father and was manifested to us; so then, what we saw, that we also declare unto you,
The Apostle did not proclaim in the way we do, first, for the sake of brevity of speech, then out of disregard for Hellenic empty talk, further, to show that our salvation is not in words but in deeds, and finally, to make us more attentive, so that we, finding what is set forth easy and as if self-evident, would not become distracted. Beyond this, the Theologian wished by obscurity to conceal that which is above impure hearing and with which it is unsafe to fill it; "for to give what is holy to dogs and to cast pearls before swine" (Matt. 7:6) is contrary to sound reason.
1 John 1:3. That which we have seen and heard, we declare unto you.
What exactly? That the Life, being eternal, appeared to us, and we were eyewitnesses of it both before the cross and after the resurrection. For one and the same was nailed in the flesh to the cross and rose again in the same flesh. And what benefit is it to you, he says, that we proclaim this to you? This: that just as through the word we receive you as partakers of what we have seen and heard, so we have you as partakers of both the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, and having received this, we who have cleaved to God can be filled with joy.
1 John 1:4. So that you also may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you, so that your joy may be complete.
For when we are in communion with you, we experience the greatest pleasure, similar to that which a rejoicing sower provides to the reapers at the distribution of wages, when they too rejoice that others enjoy their labors.
1 John 1:5. And this is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:6. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, but walk in darkness, then we lie and do not act according to the truth;
1 John 1:7. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:8. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
The Apostle again returns to his former discourse and explains what Gospel he heard, namely the following: God is light, and there is no darkness in Him. From whom did he hear this? From Christ Himself, Who said: "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12), and again: "I have come as a light into the world" (John 12:46). So then, He is light, and there is no darkness in Him, but a spiritual light that draws the eyes of the soul to behold Him, turning them away from everything material and arousing desire for Him alone with the most fervent love. By "darkness" he means either ignorance or sin; for in God there is neither ignorance nor sin, because ignorance and sin have their place in matter and in our disposition. And if it is said somewhere: "He made darkness His covering" (Ps. 18:12), it says that He "made" darkness, not that He "is" darkness, as it says He "is" light. For that which sets in place and that which is set in place are not the same thing. So here "darkness" signifies our ignorance about God, on account of His incomprehensibility, and this ignorance is ours, not God's. For sometimes something is attributed to one in whom it does not exist, not for his own sake, but for the sake of someone who has a relation to him. And that the Apostle calls sin darkness is evident from his Gospel saying: "and the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:5), where by darkness he means our sinful nature, which by its inclination toward falling yields to our envious adversary the devil, who drags us into sin. So then, the Light, having united Himself with our nature, which is so easily seized, became completely unseizable by the tempter. For "He committed no sin" (Isa. 53:9). So then, when we receive you as sharers in communion with God, Who is light, and in this light, as has been shown, there can be no darkness, then we too, as sharers of the light, must not admit darkness into ourselves, lest we suffer punishment for falsehood and together with falsehood be cut off from communion with the light. Therefore, holding to communion with one another, that is, with us and with the light, we must make ourselves unconquerable by sin. But how will this be, when we have already been mired in many sins before? For no one who loves truth and strives to be truthful will dare to say that he is without sin. So then, if anyone is seized by this fear, let him not despair: for whoever has entered into communion with His Son Jesus Christ has been cleansed by His Blood, shed for us. Note that on account of the most intimate union he calls Him the Son of the Father even according to what was assumed by Him from us; for blood, without doubt, belongs to our nature, not to God. And Nestorius is clearly insane and impious when he separates the flesh from the Son and does not allow His Mother to be called the Theotokos. One must also know that the entire thought of this passage overthrows the blasphemy of the Jews as well, who said: "We know that this Man is a sinner" (John 9:24). So then, he says, if we do the works of light, then we are in communion with Him, but if we do not do them, then we are strangers to Him. And how is He not the true light and completely sinless, when He "was numbered with the transgressors" for your sake (Isa. 53:12)? So then, if we, who once cried out: "His blood be on us and on our children" (Matt. 27:25), shamelessly say that we have not sinned, then we "deceive ourselves," as though crucifying Christ were no sin. The Apostle did not say: we lie, but: we deceive ourselves, because deception is outside of truth. But if we acknowledge our sin and confess it, He will forgive us.
1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins, He, being faithful and righteous, will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
The Apostle repeats his speech several times, so that through abundant and frequent reproofs he might present to them the full gravity of the transgression and incline them to confession. How great a good is born from confession can be seen from the following words: "declare thou" thy sins, "that thou mayest be justified" (Isa. 43:26); and that a teacher frequently repeats the same thing to a beginning student, first briefly, then more extensively, in order to impart clearer knowledge — this is a common practice. God, says the Apostle, "is faithful." This is the same as saying He is true; for the word "faithful" is used not only of one to whom something is entrusted, but also of one who is himself most faithful, who by his own faithfulness can make others such as well. In this sense God is faithful, and He is "righteous" in the sense that He does not drive away those who come to Him, however sinful they may be (John 6:37). Therefore, to those who through repentance have recourse to holy baptism, He undoubtedly forgives sins, even if they have sinned against Him and against others. If, he says, we confess, then we shall receive forgiveness corresponding to our confession. But if we shamelessly say that we have not sinned, then we commit a twofold evil: we show ourselves to be liars and we utter blasphemy against God. For He says through the prophet: "they rewarded me evil for good" (Ps. 35:12), and He Himself personally: "if I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike me?" (John 18:23). If even after this we say that we have not sinned, then we reject His words, which are spirit and life; for it is said: "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63).
1 John 1:1. That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our own eyes.
He says this both to the Jews and to the pagans, who disparage the mystery of our salvation as something recent. The Apostle shows that it is also ancient, for it is from the beginning and contemporaneous with the beginning conceived in the mind, or that it is more ancient not only than the law, but even than the visible creation itself, for creation had a beginning, but it existed even before the very beginning. For what can anyone say about the pagan mysteries, which appeared yesterday and the day before? They, accompanied by debauchery, arose late, at a time when impurity already dwelt in people, which that debauchery serves as a crowning point and monument, and through which we descended from a good state into the darkest night. Presenting the greatness of our mystery in its comparative antiquity, the Apostle adds that it is also Life — Life not measured by a span of time, but self-existent, as always being with the Father, as it is also said in the Gospel: "and the Word was with God" (John 1:1). The word "was" signifies not a temporal existence, but the self-existent being of a known subject, the origin and foundation of everything that received being, such that without it the latter could not have come into being. Although it is said of every created being that it is — for example, there is an angel, there is a heaven, there is a sun, and so forth — yet properly and perfectly only the Son alone is, through Whose participation all things come into being. Therefore Paul also says: "in Him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). He who previously heard about this from the initial teaching passes on to the seeing of Him, not bodily but intellectually, and not with bodily eyes but with mental ones. "Handled" is said of the Word of Life, Who said: "I am the life" (John 14:6). Perhaps it is said this way also about the Word existing in the beginning, because we heard from the law and the prophets that It would come. When It came openly with flesh, we saw It and handled It. For God, as He is in Himself, "no one has ever seen" (John 1:18). And we attached ourselves to the Word that appeared not carelessly, but, as already said, after handling, that is, after investigation in the law and the prophets we believed in the Word that appeared in the flesh. We saw and handled not what It "was" (for "who shall declare His generation?" (Isaiah 53:8)), but what It "became," and we handled It both by mental touch and at the same time by sensory touch, as, for example, Thomas did after the resurrection. For He was One and undivided, One and the Same — visible and invisible, containable and uncontainable, untouchable and tangible, speaking as a man and working miracles as God. So we speak of the Word on account of the most intimate union of God with the flesh.
1 John 1:1-2. What we beheld and what our hands handled, concerning the Word of life — For the life was manifested, and we have seen and bear witness, and declare unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested unto us.
"Beheld" means the same as saw with one's own eyes and marveled; for θεάσασθαι derives from θαυμάζειν and means: to look with wonder. "Handled" means the same as examined. The connection of the discourse is as follows: that which was from the beginning, which we heard, and saw, and beheld with our eyes, and which our hands handled concerning the Word of life, which was manifested, and which we saw, and bear witness to, and declare unto you, that is, the eternal life which is with the Father and was manifested to us; so then, what we saw, that we also declare unto you,
The Apostle did not proclaim in the way we do, first, for the sake of brevity of speech, then out of disregard for Hellenic empty talk, further, to show that our salvation is not in words but in deeds, and finally, to make us more attentive, so that we, finding what is set forth easy and as if self-evident, would not become distracted. Beyond this, the Theologian wished by obscurity to conceal that which is above impure hearing and with which it is unsafe to fill it; "for to give what is holy to dogs and to cast pearls before swine" (Matt. 7:6) is contrary to sound reason.
1 John 1:3. That which we have seen and heard, we declare unto you.
What exactly? That the Life, being eternal, appeared to us, and we were eyewitnesses of it both before the cross and after the resurrection. For one and the same was nailed in the flesh to the cross and rose again in the same flesh. And what benefit is it to you, he says, that we proclaim this to you? This: that just as through the word we receive you as partakers of what we have seen and heard, so we have you as partakers of both the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, and having received this, we who have cleaved to God can be filled with joy.
1 John 1:4. So that you also may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you, so that your joy may be complete.
For when we are in communion with you, we experience the greatest pleasure, similar to that which a rejoicing sower provides to the reapers at the distribution of wages, when they too rejoice that others enjoy their labors.
1 John 1:5. And this is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:6. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, but walk in darkness, then we lie and do not act according to the truth;
1 John 1:7. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:8. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
The Apostle again returns to his former discourse and explains what Gospel he heard, namely the following: God is light, and there is no darkness in Him. From whom did he hear this? From Christ Himself, Who said: "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12), and again: "I have come as a light into the world" (John 12:46). So then, He is light, and there is no darkness in Him, but a spiritual light that draws the eyes of the soul to behold Him, turning them away from everything material and arousing desire for Him alone with the most fervent love. By "darkness" he means either ignorance or sin; for in God there is neither ignorance nor sin, because ignorance and sin have their place in matter and in our disposition. And if it is said somewhere: "He made darkness His covering" (Ps. 18:12), it says that He "made" darkness, not that He "is" darkness, as it says He "is" light. For that which sets in place and that which is set in place are not the same thing. So here "darkness" signifies our ignorance about God, on account of His incomprehensibility, and this ignorance is ours, not God's. For sometimes something is attributed to one in whom it does not exist, not for his own sake, but for the sake of someone who has a relation to him. And that the Apostle calls sin darkness is evident from his Gospel saying: "and the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:5), where by darkness he means our sinful nature, which by its inclination toward falling yields to our envious adversary the devil, who drags us into sin. So then, the Light, having united Himself with our nature, which is so easily seized, became completely unseizable by the tempter. For "He committed no sin" (Isa. 53:9). So then, when we receive you as sharers in communion with God, Who is light, and in this light, as has been shown, there can be no darkness, then we too, as sharers of the light, must not admit darkness into ourselves, lest we suffer punishment for falsehood and together with falsehood be cut off from communion with the light. Therefore, holding to communion with one another, that is, with us and with the light, we must make ourselves unconquerable by sin. But how will this be, when we have already been mired in many sins before? For no one who loves truth and strives to be truthful will dare to say that he is without sin. So then, if anyone is seized by this fear, let him not despair: for whoever has entered into communion with His Son Jesus Christ has been cleansed by His Blood, shed for us. Note that on account of the most intimate union he calls Him the Son of the Father even according to what was assumed by Him from us; for blood, without doubt, belongs to our nature, not to God. And Nestorius is clearly insane and impious when he separates the flesh from the Son and does not allow His Mother to be called the Theotokos. One must also know that the entire thought of this passage overthrows the blasphemy of the Jews as well, who said: "We know that this Man is a sinner" (John 9:24). So then, he says, if we do the works of light, then we are in communion with Him, but if we do not do them, then we are strangers to Him. And how is He not the true light and completely sinless, when He "was numbered with the transgressors" for your sake (Isa. 53:12)? So then, if we, who once cried out: "His blood be on us and on our children" (Matt. 27:25), shamelessly say that we have not sinned, then we "deceive ourselves," as though crucifying Christ were no sin. The Apostle did not say: we lie, but: we deceive ourselves, because deception is outside of truth. But if we acknowledge our sin and confess it, He will forgive us.
1 John 1:9. If we confess our sins, He, being faithful and righteous, will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
The Apostle repeats his speech several times, so that through abundant and frequent reproofs he might present to them the full gravity of the transgression and incline them to confession. How great a good is born from confession can be seen from the following words: "declare thou" thy sins, "that thou mayest be justified" (Isa. 43:26); and that a teacher frequently repeats the same thing to a beginning student, first briefly, then more extensively, in order to impart clearer knowledge — this is a common practice. God, says the Apostle, "is faithful." This is the same as saying He is true; for the word "faithful" is used not only of one to whom something is entrusted, but also of one who is himself most faithful, who by his own faithfulness can make others such as well. In this sense God is faithful, and He is "righteous" in the sense that He does not drive away those who come to Him, however sinful they may be (John 6:37). Therefore, to those who through repentance have recourse to holy baptism, He undoubtedly forgives sins, even if they have sinned against Him and against others. If, he says, we confess, then we shall receive forgiveness corresponding to our confession. But if we shamelessly say that we have not sinned, then we commit a twofold evil: we show ourselves to be liars and we utter blasphemy against God. For He says through the prophet: "they rewarded me evil for good" (Ps. 35:12), and He Himself personally: "if I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike me?" (John 18:23). If even after this we say that we have not sinned, then we reject His words, which are spirit and life; for it is said: "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63).
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