John 1:18 (WEB)
No one has seen God at any time. The only born Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has declared him.
Catechism · 3
I Believe
“We can believe in Jesus Christ because he is himself God, the Word made flesh: "No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known."” — Catechism footnote: Jn 1:18.
Grace and Justification
“Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life.” — Catechism footnote: Cf. Jn 1:12-18; 17:3; Rom 8:14-17; 2 Pet 1:3-4.
The Son of God Became Man
“Such is first of all the case with the intimate and immediate knowledge that the Son of God made man has of his Father.” — Catechism footnote: Cf. Mk 14:36; Mt 11:27; Jn 1:18; 8:55; etc.
Fathers and councils · 80
Origen
- Origen, Against Celsus II.70Book II
“Jesus taught us who it was that sent Him, in the words, “None knoweth the Father but the Son;” and in these, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment - Origen, Against Celsus VII.27Book VII
“Hence it is said, “No man hath seen God at any time;” and the First-born of all creation is called “the image of the invisible God,” which is the same as if it were said that He is incorporeal.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment “Moreover, John, in his Gospel, when asserting that “no one hath seen God at any time,” manifestly declares to all who are capable of understanding, that there is no nature to which God is visible: not as if, He were a being who was visible by…” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment- Origen, De Principiis II.4Book II
“It is written, that “no man hath seen God at any time.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
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Gregory of Nyssa
“But “the Only-begotten God, Who is in the bosom of the Father” is excellent, and beyond all excellency:—mark you, He says, “Who is in the bosom of the Father,” not “Who came to be” there.” — editor's note: S. John i. 18
Read the whole comment“But if the contrast is one with the Only-begotten God, let our sages learn that truth has its opposite only in falsehood, and God in one who is not God.” — editor's note: Cf. S. John i. 18, reading (as S. Gregory seems to have done) θεός for υἱ& 231·ς.
Read the whole comment“…is “the seal of the energy”:—the Only-begotten God, Who is contemplated in the eternity of the Beginning of existent things, Who is in the bosom of the Father, Who sustains all things, by the word of His power, the creator of the ages, from Whom and through Whom and in Whom are all things, Who sitteth upon the circle…” — editor's note: S. John i. 18
Read the whole comment“…at all of those things which are contemplated in the fulness of the Divine bosom (all which things the Only-begotten God is, Who is in the bosom of the Father, the name of “creation” could not properly be applied to any of those things which are contemplated in God, so that the Son Who is in the Father, or the Word…” — editor's note: S. John i. 18
Read the whole comment“…long as the saying of the Scripture is true that Abraham and Moses were not capable of the knowledge of the Name, and that “no man hath seen God at any time,” and that “no man hath seen Him, nor can see,” and that the light around Him is unapproachable, and “there is no end of His greatness”;—so long as we say and…” — editor's note: S. John i. 18
Read the whole comment“And how can the word hold good, “No man hath seen God at any time” and, “Whom no man hath seen nor can see” and, “There shall no man see the face of the Lord and live” if to be inside the door, or outside, or the finding pasture, denote the essence of the Father?” — editor's note: S. John i. 18
Read the whole comment“God, Whom no man hath seen or can see? or the bodily image, that is, the form of a servant in which God was?” — editor's note: The reference is perhaps to 1 Tim. vi. 16; but the quotation is not verbal. See also S. John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“If, then, man, who is himself a created being, thinks that the Spirit and the Only-begotten God are likewise created, the hope which he entertains of a change to a better state will be a vain one; for he only returns to himself.” — editor's note: and the Only-begotten God. One Cod. reads here υἱ& 231·ν (not θεόν), as it is in S. John i. 18, though even there “many very ancient authorities” (R.V.) read…
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Irenaeus of Lyons
“For “no man,” he says, “hath seen God at any time,” unless “the only-begotten Son of God, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared [Him].”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“…all, as is written in the Gospel: “No man hath seen God at any time, except the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father; He has declared [Him].”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
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Tertullian
“With us, however, the Son alone knows the Father, and has Himself unfolded “the Father’s bosom.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“There is a certain emphatic saying by John: “No man hath seen God at any time;” meaning, of course, at any previous time.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“He “declared” (what was in) “the bosom of the Father alone;” the Father did not divulge the secrets of His own bosom.” — editor's note: Unius sinum Patris. Another reading makes: “He alone (unus) declared,” etc. See John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“For God the Father none ever saw, and lived.” — editor's note: Comp. Ex. xxxiii. 20; John i. 18; xiv. 9; Col. i. 15; Heb. i. 3.
Read the whole comment“…prophecy—so completely failed, after the transfer of the whole Spirit to the Lord, that he presently sent to inquire whether He whom he had himself preached, whom he had pointed out when coming to him, were “HE.”” — editor's note: Matt. iii. 11, 12; John i. 6–36.
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Athanasius of Alexandria
“Moreover, as was before said, not in connection with any reason, but absolutely it is said of Him, ‘The Only-begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father;’ but the word ‘First-born’ has again the creation as a reason in connection with it, which Paul proceeds to say, ‘for in Him all things were created.’” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“For the Son being ‘in the bosom of the Father,’ of necessity either the Word is not before the Son (for nothing is before Him who is in the Father), or if the Word be other than the Son, the Word must be the Father in whom is the Son.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“And again, what is said in the same John, ‘The Only-begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father,’ shews that the Son was ever.” — editor's note: Ib. i. 18.
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Hippolytus of Rome
“For John also says, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
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Jerome
“And the Evangelist John in holy accents testifies, saying,“No man hath at any time seen God.” — editor's note: i. 18.
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John Damascene
“No one hath seen God at any time; the Only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” — editor's note: St. John i. 18 (R.V.).
Read the whole comment“For by the good pleasure of our God and Father, the Only-begotten Son and Word of God and God, Who is in the bosom of the God and Father, of like essence with the Father and the Holy Spirit, Who was before the ages, Who is without beginning and was in the beginning, Who is in the presence of the…” — editor's note: St. John i. 18.
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Cyril of Jerusalem
“For the Lord Jesus encourageth my weakness, by saying, No man hath seen God at any time.” — editor's note: John i. 18. They are the Evangelist’s own words.
Read the whole comment“We believe then In One God the Father the Unsearchable and Ineffable, Whom no man hath seen, but the Only-begotten alone hath declared Him.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“To look upon God with eyes of flesh is impossible: for the incorporeal cannot be subject to bodily sight: and the Only begotten Son of God Himself hath testified, saying, No man hath seen God at any time.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“Wishing, therefore, to teach that which was not known, He called together His disciples, and asked them, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? —not from vain-glory, but wishing to shew them the truth, lest dwelling with God, the Only-begotten of God, they should think lightly of Him as if He were some mere man.” — editor's note: Compare iv. 7: “God of God begotten;” xiii. 3 and 13: “God the Son of God.” Here however, the mss. vary, and the reading of Cod. Coisl. Υἱῷ Θεοῦ μονογενεῖ is…
Read the whole comment“For the Father no man hath seen at any time, and He who then appeared to the Prophet was the Son.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
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Theodoret of Cyrus
“Wherefore the evangelist plainly exclaims, “No man hath seen God at any time,” and confirms the word of the Lord, for he says, “The only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father He hath declared Him,” and the great Moses, when he…” — editor's note: John i. 18
Read the whole comment“Now that the Son of God was not created out of the non-existent, and that there never was a time in which He was not, is expressly taught by John the Evangelist, who speaks of Him as ‘the only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father.’” — editor's note: John i. 18
Read the whole comment“And in another place he writes, “In the kingdom of Christ and of God.”” — editor's note: Ephes. v. 5. Here the A.V. rather obscures the force of the original. The R.V. alters to “in the kingdom of Christ and God,” but even this hardly brings out…
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Ambrose of Milan
“Nay, but they deny that very thing, which is the foundation of our belief, seeing that they know not the Father, who have denied the Son.” — editor's note: “In Jewry is God known.”—Ps. lxxvi. 1. Yet they deny the Son, and therefore know not the Father.—Matt. xi. 27. Cf. S. John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“It is Truth, Righteousness, the Power of God: not dumb, for it is the Word; not insensible, for it is Wisdom; not vain and foolish, for it is Power; not soulless, for it is the Life; not dead, for it is the Resurrection.” — editor's note: Christ the Word: S. John i. 1–18. Wisdom: 1 Cor. i. 24, 30. Life and Resurrection: S. John xi. 25.
Read the whole comment““No man,” saith the Scripture, “hath seen God at any time, save the Only-begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father; He hath revealed Him.”” — editor's note: S. John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“And therefore He said: “No man hath seen God at any time, except the only-begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: S. John i. 17, 18.
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Augustine of Hippo
“For in this sense He speaks of it as a great thing that He will not take away His mercies from Him, supposing us not to recognise the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father; for there the Man is not counted for His Person, but the One Person is God and Man.” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“Like fleshly bodies, He hath not; for He hath not a bosom either; yet it is said, “He who is in the bosom of the Father, hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“And according to this manner we can now understand that the Son is not only said to have been sent because “the Word was made flesh,” but therefore sent that the Word might be made flesh, and that He might perform through His bodily presence those things which were written; that is, that not…” — editor's note: John i. 3, 18, 14
Read the whole comment“But in that which is added, “And the Word was with God,” there is much reason to understand thus: “The Word,” which is the Son alone, “was with God,” which is not the Father alone, but God the Father and the Son together.” — editor's note: [The term “God,” in the proposition, “the Word was with God,” must refer to the Father, not to “the Father and Son together,” because the Son could not be said…
Read the whole comment“For He Himself hath said: “No one hath seen God at any time; but the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: Chap. i. 18.
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John Chrysostom
“John i. 18” — the author cites it
Read the whole comment“Wherefore Christ said, “No man hath seen God at any time” ( c. i. 18 ); and again, “Every man that hath heard and hath learned from God cometh unto Me.” ( c. vi. 45.)” — the author cites it
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Basil the Great
“…to the belief that of the supply of the good things which are wrought in us through the Holy Ghost, the Originator and Cause is the Only-begotten God; for we are taught by Holy Scripture that “All things were made by Him,” and “by Him consist.”” — editor's note: ὁ μονογενὴς θεός is the reading of the Sinaitic and Vatican mss. in John i. 18. The insertion of the words οὐδὲ ὁ υιἰος, adopted by R.V. in Matt. xxiv. 36, but…
Read the whole comment““No man hath seen God at any time, the Only-begotten which is in the bosom hath declared him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“…the Father;” and, “We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father;” and “the only begotten God which is in the bosom of the Father.”” — editor's note: John i. 18. “Only begotten God” is here the reading of five mss. of Basil. The words are wanting in one codex. In Chapter viii. of this work St. Basil…
Read the whole comment“At one time it uses terms descriptive of His nature, for it recognises the “name which is above every name,” the name of Son, and speaks of true Son, and only begotten God, and Power of God, and Wisdom, and Word.” — editor's note: John i. 18. cf. note on p. .
Read the whole comment“For none “can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost,” and “No man hath seen God at any time, but the only begotten God which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18. On the reading “only begotten God” cf. note on p. 9. In this passage in St. Basil “God” is the reading of three mss. at Paris, that at Moscow, that…
Read the whole comment“Now what in the one case the image is by reason of imitation, that in the other case the Son is by nature; and as in works of art the likeness is dependent on the form, so in the case of the divine and uncompounded nature the union consists in the communion of the Godhead.” — editor's note: On the right use of the illustration of εἰκών, cf. Basil Ep. xxxviii., and Bp. Lightfoot’s note on Col. i. 15. cf. also John i. 18 and xiv. 9, 10.
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Hilary of Poitiers
“…hath seen Me hath seen the Father also, and The Father is in Me and I in the Father, and I went out from the Father, and Who is in the bosom of the Father, and Whatsoever the Father hath He hath delivered to the Son, and The Son hath life in Himself, even as the Father hath in Himself.” — editor's note: Ib. i. 18.
Read the whole comment“…whom no man hath seen nor can see, and the Evangelist, No one hath seen God at any time, except the Only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father; that He alone abides eternally unborn, for it is written, I Am That I Am, and Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you, and…” — editor's note: St. John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“Isaiah did see God; even though it is written, No one hath seen God at any time, save the Only-begotten Son Who is in the bosom of the Father; He hath declared Him, it was God Whom the prophet saw.” — editor's note: Ib. i. 18.
Read the whole comment“Let him speak to us in his own familiar voice:—No one hath seen God at any time, except the Only-begotten Son, Which is in the bosom of the Father.” — editor's note: St. John i. 18.
Read the whole comment“…in the beginning was the Word, and since the Word was with God, and since He was the true Light, and since God Only-begotten is in the bosom of the Father, and since Jesus Christ is God over all.” — editor's note: St. John i. 1, 9, 18.
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Gregory of Nazianzus
“Then the Son is Only-begotten: The only “begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father, it says, He hath declared Him.”” — editor's note: John i. 18.
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Leo the Great
“…nature is transformed, so that no longer “in a mirror,” nor “in a riddle,” but “face to face” it sees the very Godhead “as He is,” which no man could see; and through the unspeakable joy of eternal contemplation obtains that “which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man.”” — editor's note: Exod. xxxiii. 20; John. i. 18; 1 Tim. vi. 16.
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Clement of Alexandria
“The only-begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him,”—calling invisibility and ineffableness the bosom of God.” — editor's note: John. i. 18.
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Catena Aurea on John
- OrigenCatena Aurea on John
Heraclcon asserts, that this is a declaration of the disciple, not of the Baptist: an unreasonable supposition; for if the words, Of His fulness have we all received, are the Baptist’s, does not the connexion run…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
Or thus; the Evangelist after shewing the great superiority of Christ’s gifts, compared with those dispensed by Moses, wishes in the next place to supply an adequate reason for the difference. The one being a servant…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
What is that then which Jacob said, I have seen God face to face; (Gen. 32.) and that which is written of Moses, he talked with God face to face; (Ex. 33) and that which the prophet Isaiah saith of himself, I saw the…
Read the whole comment - Gregory the GreatCatena Aurea on John
It is plainly given us to understand here, that while we are in this mortal state, we can see God only through the medium of certain images, not in the reality of His own nature. A soul influenced by the grace of the…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
If the old fathers had seen That very Nature, they would not have contemplated It so variously, for It is in Itself simple and without shape; It sits not, It walks not; these are the qualities of bodies. Whence he…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
Now it is said, Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God; (Matt. 5:8) and again, When He shall appear, we shall be like unto Him, for we shall see Him as He is. (1 John 3:2) What is the meaning then of…
Read the whole comment - Gregory the GreatCatena Aurea on John
If however any, while inhabiting this corruptible flesh, can advance to such an immeasurable height of virtue, as to be able to discern by the contemplative vision, the eternal brightness of God, their case affects…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
For unless any in some sense die to this life, either by leaving the body altogether, or by being so withdrawn and alienated from carnal perceptions, that he may well not know, as the Apostle says, whether he be in…
Read the whole comment - Gregory the GreatCatena Aurea on John
Some hold that in the place of bliss, God is visible in His brightness, but not in His nature. This is to indulge in over much subtlety. For in that simple and unchangeable essence, no division can be made between…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
If we say, that the text, No oned hath seen God at any time, (1 Tim. 6:16) applies only to men; so that, as the Apostle more plainly interprets it, Whom no man hath seen nor can see, no one is to be understood here…
Read the whole comment - Gregory the GreatCatena Aurea on John
Some however there are who conceive that not even the Angels see God.
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
That very existence which is God, neither Prophets, nor even Angels, nor yet Archangels, have seen. For enquire of the Angels; they say nothing concerning His Substance; but sing, Glory to God in the highest, and…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
Which indeed is true so far, that no bodily or even mental vision of man hath ever embraced the fulness of God; for it is one thing to see, another to embrace the whole of what thou seest. A thing is seen, if only…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
In this complete sense only the Son and the Holy Ghost see the Father. For how can created nature see that which is uncreated? So then no man knoweth the Father as the Son knoweth Him: and hence what follows, The…
Read the whole comment - Hilary of PoitiersCatena Aurea on John
The Truth of His Nature did not seem sufficiently explained by the name of Son, unless, in addition, its peculiar force as proper to Him were expressed, so signifying its distinctness from all beside. For in that,…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
He adds, Which is in the bosom of the Father. To dwell in the bosom is much more than simply to see. For he who sees simply, hath not the knowledge thoroughly of that which he sees; but he who dwells in the bosom,…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
In the bosom of the Father, i. e. in the secret Presence1 of the Father: for God hath not the folde on the bosom, as we have; nor must be imagined to sit, as we do; nor is He bound with a girdle, so as to have a…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
But what hath He declared? That God is one. But this the rest of the Prophets and Moses proclaim: what else have we learnt from the Son Who was in the bosom of the Father? In the first place, that those very truths,…
Read the whole comment - BedeCatena Aurea on John
Farther, if the word declared have reference to the past, it must be considered that He, being made man, declared the doctrine of the Trinity in unity, and how, and by what acts we should prepare ourselves for the…
Read the whole comment - Augustine of HippoCatena Aurea on John
Yet have there been men, who, deceived by the vanity of their hearts, maintained that the Father is invisible, the Son visible. Now if they call the Son visible, with respect to His connexion with the flesh, we…
Read the whole comment - John ChrysostomCatena Aurea on John
The text then, No man hath seen God at any time, applies not to the Father only, but also to the Son: for He, as Paul saith, is the Image of the invisible God; but He who is the Image of the Invisible, must Himself…
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Cross-references · 47
Cited together in Catechism §151.
Cited together in Catechism §473.
Cited together in Against Praxeas Chapter 8.
Cited together in Catechism §473.
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in Against Praxeas Chapter 8 and 1 other place.
Cited together in Catechism §151.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38 and 1 other place.
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.
Cited together in Catechism §1996.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith I.1 and 1 other place.
Cited together in On the Holy Spirit Chapter 10.
Cited together in Augustine of Hippo on John 1:18 (3) (Catena Aurea).
Cited together in On the Holy Spirit Chapter 10.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38 and 1 other place.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38.
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.
Cited together in Augustine of Hippo on John 1:18 (4) (Catena Aurea) and 2 other places.
Cited together in Catechism §1996.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith III.1.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith III.1.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith III.1.
Cited together in Gregory the Great on John 1:18 (Catena Aurea).
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38.
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in Against Eunomius X.1.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith I.1.
Cited together in On the Holy Spirit Chapter 10.
Cited together in An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith III.1.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38.
Cited together in John Chrysostom on John 1:18 (3) (Catena Aurea).
Cited together in Letters Letter 234.
Cited together in Catechism §151 and 2 other places.
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.
Cited together in Letters Letter 38.
Cited together in Catechism §151.
Cited together in Catechism §473.
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.
Cited together in Catechism §151.
Cited together in Catechism §473.
Cited together in John Chrysostom on John 1:18 (3) (Catena Aurea).
Cited together in The Stromata, or Miscellanies V.12.