Matthew 11:25
“I confess,” he says, in the human custom, for “I give thanks” or “I glorify you.” God-inspired scripture is accustomed to take the name “confession” in such a sense. It is written, “Let them confess, Lord, your great name, for it is fearful and holy,” (Matthew 11:25) and again, “I will confess you, Lord, with my whole heart.”
But those with a twisted mind say, “Look, he gives thanks to the Father — then how is he not lesser than him?” To this someone who knows how to champion the dogmas of truth would say: And what prevents you, my good people, from accepting that the consubstantial Son receives and praises his own Father, who saves the world under heaven through him?
If you think the confession puts him in a lesser place than the Father, look also at what follows. He confesses and calls the Father Lord of heaven and earth. And the Son of the God who rules all things surely masters all things with him — not as lesser or of another essence, but as God from God, crowned with equal glories and having equality with him in every respect essentially.
Greek
Τὸ ἐξομολογοῦμαί φησιν κατὰ συνήθειαν ἀνθρωπίνην ἀντὶ τοῦ χάριν ὁμολογῶ ἤγουν δοξάζω σε· ἔθος γὰρ τῇ θεοπνεύστῳ γραφῇ τὸ τῆς ἐξομολογήσεως ὄνομα κατὰ τοιόνδε τινὰ δέχεσθαι τρόπον. γέγραπται γοῦν ὅτι "ἐξομολογησάσθωσαν" κύριε "τῷ ὀνόματί σου τῷ μεγάλῳ, ὅτι φοβερὸν καὶ ἅγιόν ἐστιν". καὶ πάλιν· "ἐξομολογήσομαί σοι, κύριε, 15 ἐν ὅλῃ καρδίᾳ μου". ἀλλ' οἱ διεστραμμένοι τὸν νοῦν· ἰδού, φασίν, χάριν ὁμολογεῖ τῷ πατρί, εἶτα πῶς οὐκ ἐλάττων ἐστὶν αὐτοῦ; πρὸς τοῦτο φαίη τις ἂν τῶν εὖ εἰδότων τοῖς τῆς ἀληθείας συνασπίσαι δόγμασι· καὶ τί τὸ κωλῦον, ὦ βέλτιστοι, τὸν ὁμοούσιον υἱὸν ἀποδέχεσθαι καὶ ἐπαινεῖν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρα, σῴζοντα δι' αὐτοῦ τὴν ὑπ' οὐρανόν; εἰ δὲ νομίζεις διὰ τὴν ἐξομολόγησιν ἐν ἐλάττοσιν εἶναι αὐτὸν τοῦ πατρός, ὅρα καὶ τὸ ἐφ' ἑξῆς. κύριον γὰρ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς ὁμολογεῖ καὶ ἀποκαλεῖ τὸν πα τέρα. ὁ δὲ υἱὸς τοῦ τῶν ὅλων κρατοῦντος θεοῦ πάντως που σὺν αὐτῷ δεσπόζει τῶν ὅλων, οὐχ ὡς ἐλάττων ἢ ἑτεροούσιος, ἀλλ' ὡς θεὸς ἐκ θεοῦ ταῖς ἴσαις εὐκλείαις στεφανούμενος καὶ τὴν κατὰ πᾶν ὁτιοῦν ἰσό τητα πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔχων οὐσιωδῶς.
About this text
Catena fragments on Matthew (CPG 5206). Contents follow Matthew chapter and verse. Edition fragment numbers stay in About this text and under each passage.
English follows the named copy-text (Aegean/khazarzar Migne PG 72 extract). Other prints were checked as noted; no silent merge of recensions.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Migne PG 72 Commentarii in Matthaeum (Aegean Digital Patrologia / khazarzar) (Greek · CPG 5206 catena fragments (290 parsed heads))
- Checked print matia.gr mirror of same Aegean extract (Greek · Byte-identical PDF; integrity check only)
- Checked print Internet Archive PG 72 volume OCR (bim … 1859_72) (Greek (OCR damaged) · Locus confirmation only; not used as reading text)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.