Believing and Knowing

Καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι ἐθαυμάστωσε Κύριος τὸν ὅσιον αὐτοῦ. Ὁ προφήτης περὶ Χριστοῦ διδάσκει ἡμᾶς, ὅς ἐστιν ἀληθὴς ὅσιος, κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον ἐν τῷ ιεʹ ψαλµῷ·. καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι δὲ ἐµαρτύρησαν, ὡς περὶ Χριστοῦ προφητευοµένου λέγοντες εἰρῆσθαι τὸ, Οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψεις τὴν ψυχήν µου εἰς ᾄδην, οὐδὲ δώσεις τὸν ὅσιόν σοῦ ἰδεῖν διαφθοράν. Δυνατὸν δὲ καὶ περὶ παντὸς ὅσίου διδάσκεσθαι ἡμὰς. Οὐ ταυτὸν δὲ ἐστι πιστεῦσαι, ὅτι ἐθαυμάστωσε Κύριος τὸν ὅσιον αὐτοῦ, καὶ γνῶμαι, ὡς οὐδὲ ταυτόν ἐστι τῇ ἀληθείᾳ πιστεῦσαι, καὶ γνῶναι τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ πιστεῦσαι τῷ Θεῷ καὶ γνῶναι τὸν Θεόν. Οἱ ἀπόστολοι οὖν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ ἐπίστευον· ἀλλ' οὐ παντως ὅτε ἐπίστευον ἐγνώκεισαν αὐτήν. Ἀπόδειξις δὲ τῶν εἰρημένων τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον, ἐνθα εἴρηται· Εἀν μείνητε ἐν τῷ ἐμῷ λόγῳ, ἀληθῶς μαθηταί μού ἐστε, καὶ γνώσεσθε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια ἐλευθερώσει ὑμᾶς. Πιστεύουσι γὰρ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ, φησὶ, τὸ γνώσεσθαι τὴν ἀλήθειαν· κατὰ γὰρ τοὺς προφήτας πιστεῦσαι δεῖ πρὶν συνιέναι καὶ λαλῆσαι· τοῦ μὲν Ἠσαῖου λέγοντος· Ἐὰν μὴ πιστεύσητε, οὐδ' οὐ μὴ συνῆτε· τοῦ δὲ Δαυΐδ· Ἐπίστευσα, διὸ ἐλάλησα. Ὅτι δὲ τὸ γινώσκειν τὸν Θεὸν τοῦ πιστεύειν αὐτῷ διαφέρει, ἐν τοῖς Ψαλμοϊς ἀναγέγραπται διὰ ποῦ, Σχολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι εγώ εἰμι ὁ Θεός· οὐ γὰρ τοῖς ἀπιστοῦσι φησι· Σχολάσατε καὶ γνῶτε, ὅτι εγώ εἰμι ὁ Θεός. Ἐπὶ γνῶσιν οὖν ἡμας ὁ λόγος προκαλούμενος ὑποβάλλει καὶ τὴν τίνος γνῶσιν ἀναλαβειν ἡμᾶς χρὴ, ὥς εἰσιν ὑπο Θεοῦ τεθαυμαστωμένοι οἱ ὅσιοι, θαύμασι προσαχθέντες τῶν ἀποῥῥήτων μυστηρίων καὶ τῶν ἁγίων θεωρημάτων, καὶ αὐτοὶ δι' αὐτὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριν καὶ θείαν ἐπισκοπὴν θαυμαστοὶ γενόμενοι. Εὐσέβιος ὁ Καισάρειος, Ὑπομνηματα Ἐις Τους ψαλμους, ψαλμος Δ'

And know that the Lord makes a wonder of His holy one. 1 The Prophet teaches us concerning Christ, He who is truly holy, according to which it is said in the fifteenth Psalm, and the Apostles bear witness that it is spoken prophetically of Christ: 'Do not abandon my soul to the inferno, nor allow your holy one to see corruption.' 2 And this is able to teach us about every sort of holiness. It is not the same to believe that the Lord has made a wonder of his holy one, and to know it, because it is not the same to believe the truth and to know it, and to believe in God and to know God. The Apostles certainly believed in truth, but while they believed they did not completely know it. Which we say is well demonstrated by this passage of the Gospel: 'If you remain in my word, you shall truly be my disciples and you shall know truth, and the truth shall make you free.' 3 For they believe in truth, that know the truth, for according to the Prophets, belief is first and then we understand and we speak; as Isaiah says, ' If you do not believe nor shall you understand.' 4 And David says, 'I believed and so I spoke.' 5 Which shows there is a difference between knowing God and believing in God, which in the Psalms is described in these words: 'Be free and see that I am God.' 6 For this is not said to unbelievers: 'Be free and see that I am God.' When thus we are called to knowledge, as in this Psalm, it indicates at the same time knowledge of that thing which we should take up, that the holy have been made wonders by God, they who are moved wondrously by unutterable mysteries and sacred insights, and that they by the grace of God are beholders of Divine wonders. Eusebius of Caesarea, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 4 1 Ps 4.4 2 Ps 15.10, Acts 2.27 3 Jn 8, 31-32 4 Isa 7.9 5 Ps 115.10 6 Ps 45.11