Appearances And Knowledge

Τίς δ' ἐστὶν οὗτος, ὃς καὶ ἄγγελος μεγάλης βουλῆς ποτε, καὶ ἀνὴρ διὰ Ἰεζεκιήλ, καὶ ὡς υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου διὰ Δανιήλ, καὶ παιδίον διὰ Ἠσαίου, καὶ Χριστὸς καὶ θεὸς προσκυνητὸς διὰ Δαυείδ, καὶ Χριστὸς καὶ λίθος διὰ πολλῶν, καὶ σοφία διὰ Σολομῶνος, καὶ Ἰωσὴφ καὶ Ἰούδας καὶ ἄστρον διὰ Μωυσέως, καὶ ἀνατολὴ διὰ Ζαχαρίου, καὶ παθητὸς καὶ Ἰακὼβ καὶ Ἰσραὴλ πάλιν διὰ Ἠσαίου, καὶ ῥάβδος καὶ ἄνθος καὶ λίθος ἀκρογωνιαῖος κέκληται καὶ υἱὸς θεοῦ, εἰ ἐγνώκειτε, ὦ Τρύφων, ἔφην, οὐκ ἂν ἐβλασφημεῖτε εἰς αὐτὸν ἤδη καὶ παραγενόμενον καὶ γεννηθέντα καὶ παθόντα καὶ ἀναβάντα εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν· ὃς καὶ πάλιν παρέσται, καὶ τότε κόψονται ὑμῶν αἱ δώδεκα φυλαί. ἐπεὶ εἰ νενοήκατε τὰ εἰρημένα ὑπὸ τῶν προφητῶν, οὐκ ἂν ἐξηρνεῖσθε αὐτὸν εἶναι θεόν, τοῦ μόνου καὶ ἀγεννήτου καὶ ἀρρήτου θεοῦ υἱόν. εἴρηται γάρ που καὶ διὰ Μωυσέως ἐν τῇ Ἐξόδῳ οὕτως· Ἐλάλησε δὲ κύριος πρὸς Μωυσῆν, καὶ εἶπε πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἐγώ εἰμι κύριος, καὶ ὤφθην πρὸς τὸν Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβ, θεὸς αὐτῶν, καὶ τὸ ὄνομά μου οὐκ ἐδήλωσα αὐτοῖς, καὶ ἔστησα τὴν διαθήκην μου πρὸς αὐτούς. καὶ οὕτω πάλιν λέγει· Μετὰ Ἰακὼβ ἄνθρωπος ἐπάλαιε· καὶ θεόν φησιν εἶναι· Εἶδον γὰρ θεὸν πρόσωπον πρὸς πρόσωπον, καὶ ἐσώθη ἡ ψυχή μου, λέγει εἰρηκέναι τὸν Ἰακώβ. καὶ ὅτι καὶ τὸν τόπον, ὅπου αὐτῷ ἐπάλαισε καὶ ὤφθη καὶ εὐλόγησε, καὶ ἐκάλεσεν Εἶδος θεοῦ, ἀνέγραψε. καὶ τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ὁμοίως, Μωυσῆς φησιν, ὤφθη ὁ θεὸς πρὸς τῇ δρυῒ τῇ Μαμβρῆ, καθημένῳ ἐπὶ τῆς θύρας τῆς σκηνῆς αὐτοῦ μεσημβρίας. εἶτα ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐπιφέρει· Ἀναβλέψας δὲ τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς εἶδε καὶ ἰδοὺ τρεῖς ἄνδρες εἱστήκεισαν ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἰδὼν συνέδραμεν εἰς συνάντησιν αὐτοῖς. μετ' ὀλίγον δὲ εἷς ἐξ αὐτῶν ὑπισχνεῖται τῷ Ἀβραὰμ υἱόν· Τί ὅτι ἐγέλασε Σάρρα λέγουσα· Ἆρά γε τέξομαι; ἐγὼ δὲ γεγήρακα. μὴ ἀδυνατεῖ παρὰ τῷ θεῷ ῥῆμα; εἰς τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον ἀποστρέψω εἰς ὥρας, καὶ ἔσται τῇ Σάρρᾳ υἱός. καὶ ἀπαλλάσσονται ἀπὸ Ἀβραάμ. καὶ οὕτω περὶ αὐτῶν πάλιν λέγει· Ἐξαναστάντες δὲ ἐκεῖθεν οἱ ἄνδρες κατέβλεψαν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον Σοδόμων. εἶτα πάλιν πρὸς τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ὃς ἦν καὶ ἔστιν οὕτως λέγει· Οὐ μὴ κρύψω ἀπὸ τοῦ παιδός μου Ἀβραὰμ ἐγὼ ἃ μέλλω ποιεῖν. Ἅγιος Ἰουστίνος Μάρτυς, Πρὸς Τρύφωνα Ἰουδαῖον Διάλογος Source: Migne PG 6 768-769

But He who is that one who was once called the Angel of great counsel, and a Man by Ezekiel, and like the Son of Man by Daniel, and a Child by Isaiah, and worshipful Christ and God by David, and Christ and a Stone by many, and Wisdom by Solomon, and Joseph and Judah and a Star by Moses, and the East by Zechariah, and the Suffering One and Jacob and Israel by Isaiah again, and a Rod, and Flower, and Cornerstone, and Son of God, if you knew, Trypho, you would not have blasphemed Him, who has now come, and been born, and suffered, and ascended to heaven, who shall also come again, and then your twelve tribes shall mourn. For if you had understood what has been spoken by the Prophets, you would not have denied that He was God, Son of the only, unbegotten, unutterable God. For Moses says somewhere in Exodus something like: 'The Lord spoke to Moses and said to him: I am the Lord, and I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, their God; and my name I did not reveal to them, and I established my covenant with them.' 1 And thus again he says, 'A man wrestled with Jacob,' and he says it was God. 'I have seen God face to face, and my soul was saved,' 2 it tells us that Jacob said. And it is recorded that he called the place where he wrestled and He appeared and blessed him, the Face of God. And likewise Moses says that God appeared also to Abraham at the oak in Mamre, when he was sitting at the door of his tent at midday. Then he goes on to say: 'And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, three men were standing before him, and seeing them, he hurried to meet them.' 3 After a little time, one of them promises Abraham a son: 'Why did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I bear a child, being so old? Is anything impossible to the word of God? At the time appointed I will return, and Sarah will have a son. And they went away from Abraham.' Again he speaks of them: 'And the men rose up from there and looked toward Sodom.' 4 Then again to Abraham He who was and is says: 'I will not hide from my servant Abraham what I intend to do.' 5 Saint Justin Martyr,  from The Dialogue With Trypho 1 Exod 6.2-3 2 Gen 32.24, 30 3 Gen 18.2  4 Gen 18.16  5 Gen 18.17