Origen, COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN Complete

Translated by Allan Menzies.

Origen Resources OnLine & in Print

128 Pages

Page 119

And if He refers us to the Scriptures as testifying of Him, it is not to one that He sends us, to the exclusion of another, but to all that speak of Him, those which, in the Psalms, He calls the chapter of the book, saying, [4796] "In the chapter of the book it is written of Me." If any one proposes to take these words, "In the chapter of the book it is written of Me," literally, and to apply them to this or that special passage where Christ is spoken of, let him tell us on what principle he warrants his preference for one book over another. If any one supposes that we are doing something of this kind ourselves, and applying the words in question to the book of Psalms, we deny that we do so, and we would urge that in that case the words should have been, "In this book it is written of Me." But He speaks of all the books as one chapter, thus summing up in one all that is spoken of Christ for our instruction. In fact the book was seen by John, [4797] "written within and without, and sealed; and no one could open it to read it, and to loose the seals thereof, but the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, who has the key of David, [4798] he that openeth and none shall shut, and that shutteth and none shall open." For the book here spoken of means the whole of Scripture; and it is written within (lit. in front), on account of the meaning which is obvious, and on the back, on account of its remoter and spiritual sense. Observe, in addition to this, if a proof that the sacred writings are one book, and those of an opposite character many, may not be found in the fact that there is one book of the living from which those who have proved unworthy to be in it are blotted out, as it is written: [4799] "Let them be blotted out of the book of the living," while of those who are to undergo the judgment, there are books in the plural, as Daniel says: [4800] "The judgment was set, and the books were opened."

[4796] xl. 7.

[4797] Apoc. v. 1-5.

[4798] Apoc. iii. 7.

[4799] Ps. lxix. 28.

[4800] Dan. vii. 10.

Previous Page / First / Next Page of Origen - COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

Origen Home Page ||| More Church Fathers

Elpenor's Free Greek Lessons

Reference address : https://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/fathers/origen/john-commentary.asp?pg=119