In illud Filius ex se nihil facit

Of our father among the saints, John Chrysostom, in the great church, the bishop having spoken briefly beforehand on the Gospel, on the passage, "The Son never does anything of himself, unless he sees the Father doing something." 1. O the violence, O the tyranny. The teacher, having the cup full and having spoken beforehand, brought us the drink to taste with the tips of the lips. This he did, not from a lack of teaching; for he is accustomed to gush forth no less than a spring. But, as I said before, manifesting the tyranny of your love, which you have practiced displaying toward our insignificance. For this reason he quickly fell silent and closed the discourse, wishing to gratify your desire, and making us liable for the entire debt. Since, then, he has yielded the word to us, and I see you hanging upon our tongue, it is necessary henceforth to strip for the wrestling. But assist me, and reach out a hand, rousing our tongue with your prayers, and by the understanding of your hearing making the teaching easy. For the prophet seeks not only a wonderful counselor, but also an intelligent hearer. For the contest set before us today is not an ordinary one, but one requiring many prayers, much vigilance on the part of the hearers, and much zeal on the part of the speaker, so that what is said may be spoken with accuracy, and planted with security in the mind of your love. For I wish you not only to hear, but also to be instructed; not only to learn, but also to teach.

not only to receive them yourselves, but also to transmit them to others. For in this way our assembly will be more splendid, and the congregation larger, when you are able, through what you hear, to instruct others as well. In the previous gathering, then, I brought forward this evangelical saying, "My Father is still working, and I am working," and from this I demonstrated his equality with the one who begot him, which the evangelist had already declared before this, saying, "For this reason they persecuted him all the more, not only because he broke the Sabbath, but also because he called God his own Father, making himself equal to God." Thus I concluded the discourse. Today, however, it is necessary to refute the objections brought against these points by the heretics. For even if we are contending among friends, we must employ such precision that the argument may be invulnerable and unconquerable from every side, even if it were set among enemies. For, as I said earlier, I do not wish you only to hear, but also to teach others. Hence I have been eager to furnish you with spiritual weapons with all exactness, so that no limb may appear exposed, nor receive a mortal wound. For the word serves us as a weapon, both protecting our own and striking the enemy—striking not to overthrow, but to raise up those who are fallen. For such is the nature of this battle: it erects a trophy for the salvation of those who fight. In order that this may come to pass, direct your mind to me, casting out all worldly care, rouse your attention, and present me with a keen eye.

Neither let the rich man be puffed up by idleness, nor let the poor man be weighed down by the anxiety of poverty. But casting out all this unevenness of life, let each one present himself as a prepared hearer. For the matters now before us are not ordinary. And for this reason I continually give these instructions, because I know the depth into which we are about to proceed. But do not be disturbed upon hearing "depth." For when the Spirit leads by the hand, the waters have no darkness, but there will be great ease—only if you walk this path that I command. And do not be disturbed, nor be troubled. For even the matters stirred up today at first disturb the inattentive hearer and cast him into perplexity; but if he awaits the end, seeing the appropriate resolution, he will enjoy a clear calm, and will be able to moor his soul in a waveless harbor. So that these things may come to pass, do not be disturbed, nor be troubled, but follow the path with all patience and endurance, as the teaching of the discourse shows. What then are the things brought against us by them? "The Son," they say, "can do nothing from himself, unless he sees the Father doing something." Yet these things are said by Scripture. For what reason, then, are they brought against us by them? They are not brought as they are said by Scripture. For what do they wish to construct from this? "Do you see," they say, "how the Son of God overturned that notion of equality? For since the Jews," they say, "suspected this—that he makes himself equal to God—for this reason he countered by saying, 'The Son can do nothing from himself.'

2. Was I not right, then, to say that the words would disturb you, and that spoken from the very outset they would agitate the hearer? But wait, and you will see them consumed by their own weapons. For in the first place, the saying was not a suspicion of the Jews—which we demonstrated with complete clarity in the previous discourse. To avoid stirring that up again, referring the hearer to that discussion, we will attempt to resolve what is now brought forward, showing that he does not say these things to overturn that suspicion, but rather to establish and confirm it with great precision, providing us with a demonstration of his closeness to the one who has come, and of great genuineness, connection, and harmony. For I am so confident in what has been said that I declare this very statement to be a proof of his kinship with the Father, and of their being unalterable in essence. Do not be disturbed by the reasonings of the heretics. For neither swords painted on walls, nor spears, nor points could frighten enemies who look fierce and sharp. For whatever it may be, it is some shadow and image, not the truth of realities. Such are the reasonings of the heretics, which, to refute, let us come close to this statement, turning it over continuously, and for now let us ask them how they wish to interpret the saying. For reading alone is not sufficient. If reading were sufficient, why would Philip say to the eunuch, "Do you understand what you read?" Hence, that man, while reading, knew nothing of the contents; therefore he said, "I beg you, about whom does the prophet speak—about himself, or about another?

If reading were sufficient, how is it that the Jews, reading the Old Testament and the things concerning the birth of Christ, the signs, the wonders, the place, the time, the cross, the tomb, the resurrection, the ascension, the seat at the right hand, the descent of the Spirit, the dispersion of the apostles, the expulsion of the synagogue, and the nobility of the Church, have not believed even to this day? Therefore, reading is not sufficient unless understanding is also present. For just as if someone eats but does not digest, he will never live; so if someone reads but understands nothing of what is contained, he will not attain the truth. Do not, then, give me the evangelical text, but also interpret it. This I demand of them, so that when I demolish their unsound notions, I may then lay the foundation of the truth. This is what builders do: they do not first lay the foundation of the buildings until they have removed the decayed parts, so that they may build securely. Let us then imitate them. Tell me, then: can the Son do absolutely nothing of himself? For he did not say that he can make men but cannot make angels, nor that he can make angels but cannot make archangels; but he said that he can do nothing. Therefore, is the saying one of weakness, if indeed he cannot, according to your supposition, and of force and intense necessity, if indeed he does nothing of himself, but only whatever he sees the Father doing?

Behold, even with teaching added later, all these things are foreign to that pure and indestructible essence, which is ineffable, unspeakable, and incomprehensible. And what am I saying about Christ? For not even concerning myself, the small and insignificant one, born from the earth, can it be said that I am unable to do anything of my own accord; nor concerning you, nor any other human being. For if this were true, then hell, punishment, and retribution would be in vain; crowns, rewards, and goods would be in vain. For we would not undergo those things when we sin, nor would we enjoy these when we do right, if indeed we do nothing of our own accord. For rewards are not simply for the deeds, but for the intention. I mean something like this: when someone does a good deed of his own accord, then he is crowned and proclaimed, not simply when he acts, but with intention and choice. And so that you may learn that these things are true: "There are eunuchs," it says, "who were castrated by men; and there are eunuchs who castrated themselves for the sake of the kingdom of heaven." Here he calls eunuchs not those who cut off their limbs, but those who cut off the evil reasoning full of licentiousness, not with an iron knife, but using reasoning and philosophy and the help of God for this purpose. Behold, two eunuchs: some whose limbs were cut off by men, others who cut off the evil reasoning with piety. But nevertheless, even if they were castrated in different ways, both alike abstain from intercourse with women. I said "alike" not according to intention, but according to the nature of the thing.

For not even a eunuch could have intercourse with a woman, nor the monk who has castrated himself. And the act is one, but the end is not one. For this reason, concerning those others, after saying that they were castrated by men, he assigned them no reward for this; for it was a matter of nature, not of discipline. But having brought these forward, he crowned them with the kingdom, saying, "For the sake of the kingdom of heaven." And yet neither does this one have intercourse with a woman, nor that one; but the one is bound by necessity, while the other has accomplished the deed by choice, having worked and achieved this of his own accord. Then, men are able of themselves to do such things, and to act, and to philosophize, and to speak, and to accomplish countless other things; but the Master of the angels will not be able to do anything, small or great, of himself? And who will endure this? Do you not hear Paul saying that in a great house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also wooden and earthenware ones; and some are for honor, others for dishonor? If, then, someone cleanses himself of these, he will be a vessel consecrated for honor to the Master. 3. Do you see that even these correct themselves of their own accord? For this is what it means: "If someone cleanses himself." What, then, is the meaning of what has been said? If our discourse were only to our own people, I would already have brought the solution; but since it is to enemies and adversaries, it is necessary to demolish their arguments; having again brought the passage forward, let us make it clear in this way. That it is possible for us of ourselves both to do and to speak, the argument has sufficiently demonstrated. For if this were not so, we would not have been crowned when we succeed.

One must ask the heretic again: what does it mean, "If he does not see the Father doing something, he cannot do anything by himself"? For from this saying, I mean, not from the interpretation—or rather, not even from the saying, but from the distorted interpretation of the heretics—it is necessary that a double creation be introduced. How and in what manner? "If he does not see," he says, "the Father doing something, he cannot do." Therefore, it is absolutely necessary that there be works of the Father that are completed, and also other works of the Son, which he constructed by looking at those. For if he does not see someone doing something, he does not do, he says. So that he may see, it is necessary that the works exist. What then? Tell me: we see one sun; will you be able to show me two, so that I might suspect one is of the Father and the other of the Son? And two moons, and two earths, and two seas? And so on for all other things? But you could not say so; for the sun is one. How then, if he does not see him doing something, does he not do? Whose work do you wish the sun to be? Of the Father? Where then is that of the Son? Or of the Son? Where then is that of the Father, seeing which this one made another like it? And how will that statement stand, "All things came to be through him, and without him not one thing came to be"? For if all things are through him, what occasion would this division have? Do you see the state of your reasonings? How you pierce yourselves, and falsehood refutes itself? Behold, having brought their interpretation into the open, how I have shown it to be struck down by itself. And I would gladly ask this as well: who took on our flesh and entered a virginal womb? The Father or the Son? Tell me. Is it not clear to everyone that it was the only-begotten Son of God?

For Paul speaks thus: "Let this be thought among you, which is also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it a usurpation to be equal to God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant." And, "God sent forth his only-begotten Son, born of a woman, born under the law." And every Scripture, both old and new, is filled with these testimonies; and the facts cry out that the Only-begotten was incarnated, not the Father. Was it, then, that the Son, having seen the Father incarnated, became incarnated? [For he would not have become incarnated] unless he had beheld him. For he can do nothing by himself, unless he sees the Father doing something. When would I see the Father having done this? You could not say. And do not think that what has happened is a small matter. For the chief point of our salvation is the incarnation of the Only-begotten, his condescension. For before he became man, the evils of wickedness held sway, and the deepest night covered everything, and everywhere there were altars and temples to idols, and the smoke of sacrifices, and streams of blood, flowing not only from sheep and cattle, but also from human beings. For they sacrificed their own sons and daughters to the demons; and this was the people who had prophets, who partook of the law, who enjoyed visions of God, who were nurtured on so many wonders. But if these were such, consider how the rest of the inhabited world was disposed, driven mad by demons, tyrannized by wickedness, bent under all passions, tending to wood, worshipping stones, mountains, hills, glens, trees, lakes, springs, and rivers.

And why must I speak of others? For from the evils among the Jews I shall see the excess among the rest. Horses became mad for mares, each one neighed at the wife of his neighbor. The ox knew its owner, and the ass the manger of its master, but Israel did not know me. Dogs were mute, unable to bark. The face of a harlot came to you, you were shameless before all. There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God; all have turned aside, all have become useless at once. Again another: In vain does the silversmith work silver; their wickedness has not been melted away. Another again: Curse, and falsehood, and theft, and murder, and adultery are poured out upon the earth, and they mix blood with blood. Another again: If the Ethiopian changes his skin, and the leopard its spots, then this people will be able to do justice, having learned evil. Another again: Woe to the soul, for piety has perished from the earth, and there is no one who does right among men; all judge by bloodshed. God again: I have hated, I have rejected your feasts, and I will not smell the sacrifice in your assemblies. Elijah: They have torn down your altars, and killed your prophets; and I alone have been left, and they seek my life. Again God: I have abandoned my house, I have left my inheritance, I have given my beloved soul into the hands of its enemies. David again: They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons, and they poured out innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters. 4. Have you seen the tyranny of evil?

They became dogs and horses, more irrational than asses, more senseless than oxen, and raged against nature itself. But after the incarnation of Christ, what does Scripture say? "Our Father, who art in the heavens." And before this, Scripture said: "Go to the ant, O sluggard." After these things, we were deemed worthy of adoption, were enrolled in heaven, dance with the angels, share in their melody, and have set our contest with the bodiless powers. And hills have been raised up, and temples have been razed. And stone was shown to be stone, and wood, wood, and trees, trees, and springs, springs. For when the sun of righteousness shone, it revealed the nature of things, which the night of error and the deep darkness of ignorance had previously concealed, confounding the vision of the deceived. But since the ray of the sun of righteousness scattered the dense cloud of error, everywhere there is light and day, bright and steadfast noon. And the Persians who marry their mothers now practice virginity. And those who did not recognize their own sons and slaughtered them have become the most gentle and mild of all. The wolves have changed to the gentleness of sheep; rather, even those worse than wolves. For a wolf does not ignore nature, but recognizes its offspring; men became wilder than these. But after the incarnation of the Only-Begotten and the economy, casting off their savagery, they returned to their own nobility; rather, they ascended to the virtue of the angels.

And before this, the cities were filled with impiety, but today even the desert philosophizes, and the huts of monks in the mountains and glens imitate the polity of angels, having cast off the present life. For what need is there of verbal contrivance, when the facts themselves cry out and show more clearly than the sun the goods that, after that wondrous and spiritual travail of the Virgin, and the economy, and the incarnation, overtook the whole world? Yet such and so great an achievement He has done from Himself; and Paul cries out, saying: "Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider it a usurpation to be equal to God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave." Do you hear, heretic, that He emptied Himself? And again elsewhere: "Just as Christ loved us, and gave Himself up for us as an offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor." Who was crucified from Himself, and was slain from Himself; wherefore He Himself said: "I have authority to lay down my soul, and I have authority to take it again. No one takes it from me; I lay it down from myself." What do you say here, O heretic, who adduces the evangelical saying that says, "The Son can do nothing from Himself"? Behold, He Himself says: "I lay it down from myself, and I take it from myself." And this is no small thing that has been said, but very great. And it is said concerning the Father that He has authority over death and life. Do you see how you have escaped from within the nets? For what will you say to this saying? "I lay it down from myself, and I take it from myself." How then did you say that He does nothing from Himself?

But, as I said, if our argument were directed against heretics, I would have left them in perplexity and bound them, and then withdrawn, having taken sufficient victory and a glorious trophy, and provided the greatest demonstration of their folly. Since, however, I wish not only to silence the opponents but also to instruct those who are with us and to educate our own members, I will not end the argument here, but will try to proceed further, having shown another work that refutes their shameless contradiction. For what does he say? The Father judges no one, but the Son judges all. I ask the heretic, then: if the Father judges no one, and the Son judges, how does he judge? For if he can do nothing on his own unless he sees the Father doing something, and the Father does not judge, but he himself judges all, how can he do what he has not seen? And do not pass over this lightly; for this is not a small matter, but one of the greatest power. Consider how great it is: to bring all those from Adam until the end of the world—Greeks, Jews, heretics, those who have erred in the orthodox faith—on that day, and to bring forth into the open the hidden things of all: their deeds, their words, their deceptions, their plots, the secrets of their mind, with no testimonies brought, no proofs, no images, no demonstrations, nor any such things, but using their own power for the refutation.

Yet, despite this, he accomplishes such a great and magnificent feat without first having seen the Father and then imitating him; for the Father judges no one. Observe him also elsewhere acting with authority in everything—in miracles, in legislation, and in all other matters. For when he went up the mountain and was about to give the new covenant, he says: "You have heard that it was said to the ancients, 'You shall not kill; whoever kills shall be liable to judgment'; and 'Whoever says, "Fool," shall be liable to the gehenna of fire.' But I say to you that everyone who becomes angry with his brother without cause shall be liable to judgment. You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say, do not resist the evil one; rather, if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other to him as well." What is this? Does he who does nothing on his own also correct the Father's works and improve the legislation? When I say "corrects," do not suspect anything blasphemous, as if the Father were weaker. For even if the legislation is inferior, it is not because of God, but because of those who received the law. Moreover, the Old Testament belongs to the Only-Begotten, and the New to the Father. How then, tell me, does he who does nothing on his own add to the Old Testament, when he displays such authority? Could anything be weaker than the heretics? For the Jews were astonished that he taught them as one having authority, and not like the scribes and Pharisees; the Jews testify that he has authority, but these testify that he can do nothing on his own. And they did not say, "as one having authority," but "as one having authority.

For the authority did not come to him later, but the authority was born complete, lacking nothing. That is why, when asked about the kingdom, he said: "I was born for this." Again, a paralytic was brought to him, and he says, after he healed his sins: "But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth, he says to him: 'Take up your bed and go to your house.'" The crowds said that he does everything as one having authority; but he himself said: "The Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth," and "I have authority to lay down my soul, and I have authority to take it up." He legislates with authority, he looses sins with authority, he has authority over death and life, and how do you say that he does nothing from himself? Could anything be clearer than this victory? 6. But if you wish, then, having gotten rid of the heretics, let us bring the solution to what has been said, first teaching you this, that the phrase "He cannot," when said of God, does not

weakness, but a demonstration of power. And if what has been said is novel, nevertheless we will provide a clear proof. If I say that it is not possible for God to sin, I am not accusing him of weakness, but I am bearing witness to his greatest power. If I say that it is not possible for God to lie, again I demonstrate the same thing. Just as Paul also said: "If we endure, we will also reign together; if we disbelieve, he remains faithful; for he cannot deny himself." Do you see that "cannot" is a sign of power? And why do I speak about God? For I am exercising the argument even on these perceptible materials. If I say that adamant cannot be shattered, am I thereby attesting weakness to it, or am I bearing witness to its greatest power? Therefore, when you hear that God cannot sin, and cannot lie, and cannot deny himself, do not suppose weakness from the "cannot" being said, but the greatest and most intense power, because his essence is unreceptive of all wickedness, inaccessible, pure, superior. Since this has been clarified, come then, let us bring the exercise of the argument to the subject at hand. The Son cannot do anything from himself. What then is "from himself"? For if you learn this with precision, then you will know his great closeness to the one who begot him, the unchangeable nature of the essence, that he is of such an essence as the Father also is. What then is "cannot from himself"? He cannot do something particular apart from the Father, he cannot do something foreign and separated from the Father, nor can he do something alienated, nor anything other than what the Father does.

For what that one does, this one also does. Therefore, "He cannot act from himself" is not a removal of freedom, nor an abolition of authority, but a demonstration of concord, a testimony of harmony, and a sign of precise closeness and identity. For since he had broken the Sabbath, they accused him of lawlessness, saying: "The God commanded one thing, but you do another." Blocking this shamelessness of theirs, he says: "Nothing has been done by me contrary to what has been done by the Father; nor am I opposed to him or an enemy." But if he did not speak thus, but shaped the discourse in a more human and coarser manner, consider that he was speaking to Jews, who thought him an opponent of God. For this reason he also quickly added, so that no one might suspect anything of the sort: "The works that that one does, these the Son likewise does." But if he does nothing from himself, how does he do likewise? For the doing is not great; for the apostles also did this—they raised the dead, cleansed lepers—but not "likewise" as he did. But how did they? "Why do you pay attention to us, as if we had done this by our own power or authority to make him walk?" And how did Jesus? "So that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth." And again, concerning the resurrection of the dead: "Just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so also the Son gives life to whom he wishes." And yet "Thus" would have sufficed; but to further check the shamelessness of those wishing to dispute, he also added "wishes," clearly with full authority. For this reason he says: "The works that that one does.

He did not say, "The Son does such things," but "The Son does those very things." For everything came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. Do you see how he compresses the argument into a certain precise unity, conjunction, and closeness, not saying "such things," but saying "those very things" and "likewise as the Father"? For this reason, too, in the condescension of the argument, shaping it, he used the expression there with great caution. For he did not say, "unless he is taught something by the Father," lest you introduce him as a disciple; nor did he say, "unless he is commanded something," lest you suspect him of the rank of slaves; but, "unless he sees the Father doing something." And even this, spoken thus, indicates great closeness to the Father. For if he is able to see the Father working and to know how he works, this is of the same substance. For often we have demonstrated before that no one can see substance with precision or know it clearly unless he is of the same nature. For instance, a man could not see an angel present in its bare substance, even Daniel, who was adorned with great virtue. For this reason, setting this as something exceptional to his nature, he said: "No one has ever seen God; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he explained." And again: "No one has seen the Father, except the one who is from God, he himself has seen the Father." Yet many others have seen—prophets, patriarchs, righteous men, and angels—but he means precise knowledge. Not that we will say that he acts only when he sees him.

Since, "Everything came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be," how could it be reasonable? And the saying, "The works which that one does, these the Son likewise does"? For if he does likewise, how, seeing him first, does he then do? For according to your argument, it will be necessary that the Father also, seeing another working, does so—which is of the utmost madness and folly. But in order that we may not, by refuting these weak and absurd points, prolong the discourse, we will say this: that since his speech was to Jews, who said he was an enemy of God and hostile to the lawgiver, and gathered this from the things that happen, for this reason he shaped the discourse in a more human and coarser manner, leaving it to the intelligent hearer to know the God-befitting meaning, and correcting those who conceive something coarser; hence he said, "For the works which that one does, these the Son likewise does." For he does not indeed wait to see the Father working, and then do, nor does he need instruction; but he sees his essence, and knows it clearly. For just as the Father knows me, he says, so I know the Father. And he works and creates everything with the authority proper to him, with the understanding and wisdom allotted to him, not needing to learn, not needing to see. For how, being an exact image in relation to the one who begot him, and doing everything likewise to that one, and with the same power? For speaking about power, he added this, saying, "I and the Father are one.

Knowing all these things, then, and having gathered together what has been said, let us turn away from the assemblies of the heretics, and let us cleave continually to the right faith, and let us display a life of exactness and conduct equal to the doctrines, so that we may attain the future goods, by the grace and mercies of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom is the glory and the power, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.