Homilies on the Gospel of John

² And why say I that the Son did this, when the Father also who took not the flesh does the same thing? For He also endured that many lowly things should be said concerning Him for the salvation of the hearers. For the, “Adam, where are you?”, and, “That I may know whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it”; and, “Now I know that you fear God”; and, “If they will hear”; and, “If they will understand”; and, “Who shall give the heart of this people to be so?” and the expression, “There is none like You among the gods, O Lord”; these and many other like sentences in the Old Testament, if a man should pick them out, he will find to be unworthy of the dignity of God. In the case of Ahab it is said, “Who shall entice Ahab for Me?” And the continually preferring Himself to the gods of the heathen in the way of comparison, all these things are unworthy of God. Yet in another way they are made worthy of Him, for He is so kind, that for our salvation He cares not for expressions which become His dignity. Indeed, the becoming man is unworthy of Him, and the taking the form of a servant, and the speaking humble words, and the being clothed in humble (garments), unworthy if one looks to His dignity, but worthy if one consider the unspeakable riches of His lovingkindness. And there is another cause of the humility of His words. What is that? It is that they knew and confessed the Father, but Him they knew not. Wherefore He continually betakes Himself to the Father as being confessed by them, because He Himself was not as yet deemed worthy of credit; not on account of any inferiority of His own, but because of the folly and infirmity of the hearers. On this account He prays, and says, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.” For if He quickens whom He will, and quickens in like manner as does the Father, wherefore does He call upon Him?

But it is time now to go through the passage from the beginning. “Then they took up the stone where the dead man lay. And Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I knew that You hear Me always, but because of the people that stand by I said it, that they might believe that You have sent Me.” Let us then ask the heretic, Did He receive an impulse from the prayer, and so raise the dead man? How then did He work other miracles without prayer? Saying, “Thou evil spirit, I charge you, come out of him”; and, “I will, be thou clean”; and, “Arise, take up your bed”; and, “Your sins be forgiven you”; and to the sea, “Peace, be still.” In short, what has He more than the Apostles, if so be that He also works by prayer? Or rather I should say, that neither did they work all with prayer, but often they wrought without prayer, calling upon the Name of Jesus. Now, if His Name had such great power, how could He have needed prayer? Had He needed prayer, His Name would not have availed. When He wholly made man, what manner of prayer did He need? Was there not then great equality of honor? “Let Us make,” It says, “man.” What could be greater sign of weakness, if He needed prayer? But let us see what the prayer was; “I thank You that You have heard Me.” Who now ever prayed in this manner? Before uttering any prayer, He says, “I thank You,” showing that He needed not prayer. “And I knew that You hear Me always.” This He said not as though He Himself were powerless, but to show that His will and the Father's is one. But why did He assume the form of prayer? Hear, not me, but Himself, saying, “For the sake of the people which stand by, that they may believe that You have sent Me.” He said not, "That they may believe that I am inferior, that I have need of an impulse from above, that without prayer I cannot do anything; but, “That You have sent Me.” For all these things the prayer declares, if we take it simply. He said not, “You have sent me weak, acknowledging servitude, and doing nothing of Myself”; but dismissing all these things, that you may have no such suspicions, He puts the real cause of the prayer, “That they may not deem Me an enemy of God; that they may not say, He is not of God, that I may show them that the work has been done according to Your will.” All but saying, “Had I been an enemy of God, what is done would not have succeeded,” but the, “You heard Me,” is said in the case of friends and equals. “And I knew that You hear Me always,” that is, “in order that My will be done I need no prayer, except to persuade men that to You and Me belongs one will.” “Why then prayest Thou?” For the sake of the weak and grosser sort.