ACC ~ 1 John 1 v1

THE GENERATION OF THE SON HAS NO BEGINNING. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: When the elder wrote this, he was explaining that the principle of generation is not separate from the principle of creation. For when he says “which was from the beginning” he is referring to the generation of the Son which has no beginning, because he exists coeternally with the Father. Therefore the word was signifies eternity, just as the Word himself, that is, the Son, which is one with the Father in equality of substance, is eternal and unmade. When he says that “our hands touched the Word of life,” he means not merely the Son’s flesh but his power as well. One tradition has it that when the disciple touched Christ’s physical body he put his hand right inside and was not stopped by the hardness of the flesh from doing so, because the flesh made way for the disciple’s hand. ADUMBRATIONS.

VARIOUS HYPOTHESES. DIDYMUS THE BLIND: Many think that these words apply to the postresurrection appearances of Jesus and say that John is speaking of himself and the other disciples who first of all heard that the Lord had risen and afterwards saw him with their own eyes, to the point where they touched his feet, his hands and his side and felt the imprint of the nails. For even if Thomas was the only one who actually made physical contact with him, he was representative of the others, for the Savior told them all to touch him and see for themselves. But others take these words in a deeper sense, noting that they do not simply speak about touching but also about handling the “word of life which was from the beginning.” Who can this refer to, other than to the one who said: “I am that I am”?Another interpretation is that we have now seen openly with our own eyes the one who was in the beginning, of whom the law and the prophets spoke, saying that he would come. He has indeed come and was seen in the flesh, and after much handling of the scriptural texts which bear witness to him, this is what we believe about the Word of life. COMMENTARY ON 1 JOHN.

THE CENTRAL THEME—LOVE. AUGUSTINE: This book is very sweet to every healthy Christian heart that savors the bread of God, and it should constantly be in the mind of God’s holy church. But I choose it more particularly because what it specially commends to us is love. The person who possesses the thing which he hears about in this epistle must rejoice when he hears it. His reading will be like oil to a flame. … For others, the epistle should be like flame set to firewood; if it was not already burning, the touch of the word may kindle it. TEN HOMILIES ON 1 JOHN, PROLOGUE.

WHAT ALWAYS EXISTED. PETER CHRYSOLOGUS: How can you believe that what always existed took a beginning later on? SERMONS 57.

SEEN AND TOUCHED. SEVERUS OF ANTIOCH: Given that this same John also said, “No one has ever seen God,”how can he assure us that the living Word of life has been seen and touched? It is clear that it was in his incarnate and human form that he was visible and touchable. What was not true of him by nature became true of him in that way, for he is one and the same indivisible Word, both visible and invisible, and without diminishing in either respect he became touchable in both his divine-human nature. For he worked his miracles in his divinity and suffered for us in his humanity. CATENA.

WITH HIM FROM THE BEGINNING. BEDE: The disciples were with Jesus from the beginning, and so they could preach what they had seen and heard in his presence without any ambiguity. HOMILIES ON THE GOSPELS 2.16.

WRITTEN AGAINST HERESIES. BEDE: It was against heretics like Cerinthus and Marcion that John wrote his Gospel, stating both in his own words and in those of the Lord that the Son is consubstantial with the Father. Here in his letter he does the same thing again by conveying the Lord’s teaching in his own words and confounding the foolishness of the heretics with his apostolic authority. ON 1 JOHN.

WHAT HAS BEEN FROM THE BEGINNING. OECUMENIUS: John writes this against both the Jews and the Greeks, because they were protesting that the mystery which has appeared among us is too new to be taken seriously. He therefore answers them by saying that in fact it is very old and has been there from the beginning. It is higher than the law and even higher than the creation itself, because while creation has a beginning this was there already. COMMENTARY ON 1 JOHN.

WE HAVE TOUCHED THE WORD OF LIFE. THEOPHYLACT: When John talks about having seen this life, he means that the disciples understood its meaning, and when he says that they touched it, he means that they had investigated it thoroughly. COMMENTARY ON 1 JOHN.

THIS LETTER NOT BY THE APOSTLE JOHN. ISHO’DAD OF MERV: About this epistle many have erred, supposing that it was written by the apostle John, yet if they had investigated the matter they would have seen that the thought, shape and authority of this letter are greatly inferior to the sound words of the Evangelist. COMMENTARIES.

1 Jn