Becoming Man

Σκοπὸς τοίνυν οὗτος καὶ χαρακτὴρ τῆς ἁγίας Γραφῆς, ὡς πολλάκις εἴπομεν, διπλῆν εἶναι τὴν περὶ τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἐπαγγελίαν ἐν αὐτῇ· ὅτι τε ἀεὶ Θεὸς ἦν καὶ Υἱός ἐστι, Λόγος ὢν καὶ ἀπαύγασμα καὶ σοφία τοῦ Πατρός· καὶ ὅτι ὕστερον, δι' ἡμᾶς σάρκα λαβὼν ἐκ Παρθένου τῆς Θεοτόκου Μαρίας, ἄνθρωπος γέγονε. Καὶ ἔστι μὲν τοῦτον εὑρεῖν διὰ πάσης τῆς θεοπνεύστου Γραφῆς σημαινόμενον, ὡς αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος εἴρηκεν· Ἐρευνᾶτε τὰς Γραφὰς, ὅτι αὐταί εἰσιν αἱ μαρτυροῦσαι περὶ ἐμοῦ· ἵνα δὲ μὴ, πάντα τὰ ῥητὰ συνάγων, πολὺς ἐν τῷ γράφειν γένωμαι, ἀρκεσθῶμεν ὡς πάντων μνημονεῦσαι, τοῦ μὲν Ἰωάννου λέγοντος· Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος· οὗτος ἦν ἐν ἀρχῇ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν. Πάντα δι' αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο, καὶ χωρὶς αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο οὐδὲ ἕν. Εἶτα· Καὶ ὁ Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο, καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν, καὶ ἐθεασάμεθα τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, δόξαν ὡς μονογενοῦς παρὰ Πατρός· τοῦ δὲ Παύλου γράφοντος· Ὃς, ἐν μορφῇ Θεοῦ ὑπάρχων, οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα Θεῷ· ἀλλ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσε, μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν, ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος, καὶ σχήματι εὑρεθεὶς ὡς ἄνθρωπος. Ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν, γενόμενος ὑπήκοος μέχρι θανάτου, θανάτου δὲ σταυροῦ. Ἀπὸ τούτων γὰρ, τῇ αὐτῇ δια νοίᾳ διερχόμενός τις πᾶσαν τὴν Γραφὴν, ὄψεται πῶς ἐν ἀρχῇ μὲν εἶπε τούτῳ ὁ Πατήρ· Γενηθήτω φῶς, καὶ, Γενηθήτω στερέωμα, καὶ, Ποιήσωμεν ἄνθρωπον· ἐπὶ δὲ συντελείᾳ τῶν αἰώνων ἀπέστειλεν αὐτὸν εἰς τὸν κόσμον, οὐχ ἵνα κρίνῃ τὸν κόσμον, ἀλλ' ἵνα σωθῇ ὁ κόσμος δι' αὐτοῦ· καὶ γέγραπται· Ἰδοὺ ἡ Παρθένος ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξει, καὶ τέξεται Υἱόν· καὶ καλέσουσι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουὴλ, ὅ ἐστι μεθερμηνευόμενον, Μεθ' ἡμῶν ὁ Θεός. Ὁ τοίνυν ἐντυγχάνων τῇ θείᾳ Γραφῇ, ἀπὸ μὲν τῶν Παλαιῶν τὰ ῥητὰ καταμανθανέτω, ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν Εὐαγγελίων θεωρείτω τὸν Κύριον γενόμενον ἄνθρωπον· Ὁ Λόγος γὰρ, φησὶ, σὰρξ ἐγένετο, καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν. Ἄνθρωπος δὲ γέγονε, καὶ οὐκ εἰς ἄνθρωπον ἦλθε· καὶ τοῦτο γὰρ ἀναγκαῖον εἰδέναι· μήποτε καὶ, εἰς τοῦτο πεσόντες οἱ ἀσεβεῖς, ἀπατήσωσί τινας, κἀκεῖνοι νομίσωσιν, ὅτι, ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν χρόνοις εἰς ἕκαστον τῶν ἁγίων ἐγίνετο, οὕτω καὶ νῦν εἰς ἄνθρωπον ἐπεδήμησεν ὁ Λόγος ἁγιάζων καὶ τοῦτον, καὶ φανερούμενος ὥσπερ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις. Εἰ γὰρ οὕτως ἦν, καὶ μόνον ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ φανεὶς ἦν, οὐδὲν ἦν παράδοξον, οὔτε οἱ ὁρῶντες ἐξενίζοντο λέγοντες· Ποταπὸς ἄρα ἐστὶν οὗτος; καὶ, Διὰ τί σὺ, ἄνθρωπος ὢν, ποιεῖς σεαυτὸν Θεόν; Εἶχον γὰρ τὴν συνήθειαν ἀκούοντες· Καὶ ἐγένετο Λόγος Κυρίου πρὸς ἕκαστον τῶν προφητῶν. Νῦν δὲ, ἐπειδὴ ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος, δι' οὗ γέγονε τὰ πάντα, ὑπέμεινε καὶ Υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου γενέσθαι, καὶ ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν, λαβὼν δούλου μορφήν· διὰ τοῦτο Ἰουδαίοις μὲν σκάνδαλόν ἐστιν ὁ τοῦ Χριστοῦ σταυρὸς, ἡμῖν δὲ Χριστὸς Θεοῦ δύναμις καὶ Θεοῦ σοφία· Ὁ Λόγος γὰρ, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ Ἰωάννης, σὰρξ ἐγένετο· τῆς Γραφῆς ἔθος ἐχούσης λέγειν σάρκα τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὡς διὰ Ἰωὴλ τοῦ προφήτου φησίν· Ἐκχεῶ ἀπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματός μου ἐπὶ πᾶσαν σάρκα· καὶ ὡς Δανιὴλ εἴρηκε τῷ Ἀστυάγῃ· Οὐ σέβομαι εἴδωλα χειροποίητα, ἀλλὰ τὸν ζῶντα Θεὸν, τὸν κτίσαντα τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἔχοντα πάσης σαρκὸς κυρείαν· σάρκα γὰρ καὶ οὗτος καὶ Ἰωὴλ τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος λέγουσιν. Πάλαι μὲν οὖν πρὸς ἕκαστον τῶν ἁγίων ἐγίνετο, καὶ ἡγίαζε μὲν τοὺς γνησίως δεχομένους αὐτόν· οὔτε δὲ, γεννωμένων ἐκείνων, εἴρηται, ὅτι αὐτὸς γεγένηται ἄνθρωπος, οὔτε, πασχόντων ἐκείνων, εἴρηται· Πέπονθεν αὐτός. Ὅτε δὲ ἐκ Μαρίας ἐπεδήμησεν ἅπαξ ἐπὶ συντελείᾳ τῶν αἰώνων εἰς ἀθέτησιν ἁμαρτίας, οὕτω γὰρ εὐδοκήσας ὁ Πατὴρ ἔπεμψε τὸν ἑαυτοῦ Υἱὸν γενόμενον ἐκ γυναικὸς, γενόμενον ὑπὸ νόμον, τότε εἴρηται, ὅτι σάρκα προσλαβὼν γεγένηται ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ἐν ταύτῃ πέπονθεν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ Πέτρος· Χριστοῦ οὖν παθόντος ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν σαρκί· ἵνα δειχθῇ, καὶ πάντες πιστεύσωμεν, ὅτι, ἀεὶ ὢν Θεὸς, καὶ ἁγιάζων, πρὸς οὓς ἐγένετο, διακοσμῶν τε κατὰ τὸ βούλημα τοῦ Πατρὸς τὰ πάντα, ὕστερον καὶ δι' ἡμᾶς γέγονεν ἄνθρωπος, καὶ σωματικῶς, ὥς φησιν ὁ Ἀπόστολος, κατῴκησεν ἡ θεότης ἐν τῇ σαρκί· ἴσον τῷ φάναι, Θεὸς ὢν, ἴδιον ἔσχε σῶμα, καὶ τούτῳ χρώμενος ὀργάνῳ, γέγονεν ἄνθρωπος δι' ἡμᾶς. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τὰ μὲν ἴδια ταύτης αὐτοῦ λέγεται, ἐπειδὴ ἐν αὐτῇ ἦν, οἷά ἐστι τὸ πεινῇν, τὸ διψῇν, τὸ πάσχειν, τὸ κοπιᾷν, καὶ τὰ ὅμοια, ὧν ἐστιν ἡ σὰρξ δεκτική· τὰ δὲ αὐτοῦ τοῦ Λόγου ἴδια ἔργα, οἷά ἐστι, τὸ ἐγείρειν νεκρeοὺς, καὶ τυφλοὺς ποιεῖν ἀναβλέπειν, καὶ τὴν αἱμοῤῥοοῦσαν ἰᾶσθαι αὐτὸν, διὰ τοῦ ἰδίου σώματος αὐτὸς ἐποίει· καὶ ὁ μὲν Λόγος τὰς τῆς σαρκὸς ἐβάσταζεν ἀσθενείας, ὡς ἰδίας· αὐτοῦ γὰρ ἦν ἡ σάρξ· καὶ ἡ σὰρξ δὲ ὑπούργει τοῖς τῆς θεότη τος ἔργοις, ὅτι ἐν αὐτῇ ἐγένετο· Θεοῦ γὰρ ἦν σῶμα. Εὖ δὲ ὁ προφήτης εἴρηκεν, ἐβάσταξε· καὶ οὐκ εἴρηκε, Τὰς ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν αὐτὸς ἐθεράπευσεν, ἵνα μὴ, ὡς ἐκτὸς ὢν τοῦ σώματος, καὶ μόνον αὐτὸ ἰασάμενος, ὡς ἀεὶ πεποίηκεν, ὑπευθύνους πάλιν τοῦ θανάτου τοὺς ἀνθρώπους καταλείψῃ. Τὰς δὲ ἀσθενείας ἡμῶν βαστάζει, καὶ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν αὐτὸς φέρει, ἵνα δειχθῇ ὅτι τε ἄνθρωπος δι' ἡμᾶς γέγονε, καὶ σῶμα τὸ ἐν αὐτῷ φέρον αὐτὰς αὐτοῦ ἴδιόν ἐστι· καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν οὐδὲν ἐβλάπτετο ἀναφέρων τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν ἐπὶ τὸ ξύλον τῷ σώματι αὐτοῦ, ὡς εἶπεν ὁ Πέτρος· ἡμεῖς δὲ οἱ ἄνθρωποι, ἀπὸ μὲν τῶν ἰδίων παθῶν ἐλυτρούμεθα, τῆς δὲ τοῦ Λόγου δικαιοσύνης ἐπληρούμεθα. Ἅγιος Ἀθανάσιος ο Μέγας, Κατὰ Ἀρειανῶν Λόγος Τρίτος Source: Migne PG 26.385a-389c

The scope and character of Holy Scripture, as we have often said, is that it contains a double account of the Saviour, that He was always God and is the Son, being the Word and radiance and wisdom of the Father, and that after for us He took flesh from the Virgin Mary the Bearer of God, and was made man. And this is to be found throughout the divinely inspired Scripture, as the Lord Himself said: 'Search the Scriptures, for they bear witness to me.' 1 But lest, in bringing together all the passages I should write too much, let it be enough to recall for all of them, John saying: 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. In the beginning He was with God. All things were made through Him and without Him not one thing was made.' 2 And then: 'And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the Only Begotten of the Father.' 3 And Paul writes: 'He who being in the form of God, thought not to seize on equality with God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and being found in the fashion of man, He humbled Himself, being obedient to death, even the death of the cross.' 4 From these, anyone searching through the whole Scripture for their meaning, will see how in the beginning the Father said to Him: 'Let there be light,' and 'Let there be a firmament,' and 'Let us make man,' 5 but in fullness of time He sent Him into the world, not that He judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him, 6 and then how it is written 'Behold, the Virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which is interpreted 'God with us.' 7 So the reader of Divine Scripture having studied the words from the ancient books, will then see that from Gospels the Lord became man; for it says: 'the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.' And He became man, and did not come into a man, for one must know this, lest impious men err here, and delude others, that, as in former times, the Word came into each of the holy ones, so now in that way He dwelt in a man, the Word sanctifying even him, and manifesting Himself as in the others. For if it were so that He only appeared in man, it would have not been so strange, that those observing Him would have been bewildered, saying, 'Where is He from?' And 'Why do you, being a man, make yourself God?' For they were accustomed to hear that the Word of the Lord came to each of the Prophets, but now the Word of God, through whom all things were made, suffered to become even the Son of Man, and humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant, by which the cross is a scandal to the Jews, but to us Christ is the wisdom and power of God. 8 For as John says: 'the Word was made Flesh,' and Joel the Prophet says: 'I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,' 9 and Daniel said to Astyages: 'I do not revere idols made by human hands but the living God who created heaven and earth and has dominion over all flesh,' 10 for both he and Joel call the race of men flesh. Of old, then, He came to each of the holy ones and sanctified those who rightly received Him, but it was not said that when they were conceived He became man, nor when they suffered was it said that He suffered. But when He dwelt among us from Mary, once in the fullness of time, for the abolition of sin, for so it pleased the Father that he send His own Son, made of woman, made under the Law, 11 then, it is said, that taking flesh He became man, and in that suffered for us, as Peter says: 'Christ, then, having suffered for us in the flesh,' 12 that it be revealed, and that all believe, that always being God, and sanctifying those to whom He came, ordering all things to the will of the Father, after, for us, He became man, and as the Apostle says: 'bodily the Godhead dwelt in the flesh.' 13 Which is to say that being God He had His own body, and employing this as an instrument, He became man for us. And because of this the things of the flesh are said to be His, since He was in it, such as to hunger and thirst, to suffer, to be weary, and the like, which is proper to the flesh, and also the works of the Word are His, such as to raise the dead, and make the blind see, and cure the flow of blood, which He did through His own body. And the Word bore the infirmities of the flesh, as His own, for His was the flesh, and the flesh served the works of the Godhead, since it was in it, for the body was God's. And well did the Prophet say 'bore' 14 and did not say, 'He remedied our infirmities,' lest, as being outside the body, and only healing it, as He has always done, He should leave men yet subject to death. But He bears our infirmities, and He Himself bears our sins, that it be shown that He became man for us, and that the body which in Him bore them is His own, and He Himself is unharmed by 'bearing our sins in His body on the tree,' as Peter says, 15 yet we men were freed from our own passions, and filled with the righteousness of the Word. Saint Athanasius The Great, from the 3rd Discourse Against The Arians 1 Jn 5.39 2 Jn 1.1-4 3 Jn 1.14 4 Philip 2.6-8 5 Gen 1.3,6,26 6 Jn 12.47 7 Mt 1.23 8 1 Cor 1.24 9 Joel 2.28 10 Dan 14.5 11 Galat 4.4 12 1 Pet 4.1 13 Colos 2.9 14 Isaiah 53.4 15 1 Pet 2.24