Baptist prepares the Lord’s way; David’s throne forever — Christ is God
From Luke’s Gospel. An angel of God says to Zechariah about the holy Baptist: “And there will be joy and gladness for you, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great before the Lord, and he will drink no wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb, and he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God.” (Luke 1:14–16)
And when asked by the Jews, “Who are you?” he says: “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.” (John 1:23) (Isaiah 40:3) And Zechariah himself, prophesying over his own child, says: “And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins.” (Luke 1:76–77) For he went ahead of Christ, and became his forerunner, and proclaimed that the ways were to be prepared for him, and prophesied the word concerning him, turning people as toward God who is able to justify those in sins. Then — how is Christ not God?
“This one will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:32–33) So then — shall we lie under one of those like us, ruled continuously and without end, or shall we rather be under God ruling us who are in Christ? And not as if some outside mediator were taken on for this, but as the God and Father holding sway over all things through the Son and in the Son? And if this is true, then Christ is God.
Greek
Ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ Λουκᾶν εὐαγγελίου. Ἄγγελος Θεοῦ τῷ Ζαχαρίᾳ φησὶ περὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Βαπτιστοῦ· «Καὶ ἔσται χαρά σοι καὶ ἀγαλλίασις, καὶ πολλοὶ ἐπὶ τῇ γενέσει αὐτοῦ χαρήσονται. ἔσται γὰρ μέγας ἐνώπιον Κυρίου, καὶ οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὐ μὴ πίῃ, καὶ πνεύματος ἁγίου πλησθήσεται ἔτι ἐκ κοιλίας μητρὸς αὐτοῦ, καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραὴλ ἐπιστρέψει ἐπὶ Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν αὐτῶν.»
Ἐρωτηθεὶς δὲ ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων «Σὺ τίς εἶ;» φησίν· «Ἐγὼ φωνὴ βοῶντος ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ· ἑτοιμάσατε τὴν ὁδὸν Κυρίου, εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους αὐτοῦ.» προφητεύων δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Ζαχαρίας ἐπὶ τῷ ἰδίῳ παιδὶ φησί· «Καὶ σύ, παιδίον, προφήτης ὑψίστου κληθήσῃ· προπορεύσῃ γὰρ πρὸ προσώπου Κυρίου ἑτοιμάσαι ὁδοὺς αὐτοῦ, τοῦ δοῦναι γνῶσιν σωτηρίας τῷ λαῷ αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀφέσει ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτῶν.» προεβάδιζε γὰρ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ αὐτοῦ γέγονε πρόδρομος, καὶ αὐτῷ τὰς ὁδοὺς προετοιμάζεσθαι διεκήρυττε, καὶ τὸν ἐπ’ αὐτῷ προεφήτευε λόγον, ἐπιστρέφων ὡς ἐπὶ Θεὸν δικαιοῦν ἰσχύοντα τοὺς ἐν ἁμαρτίαις. εἶτα, πῶς οὐ Θεὸς ὁ Χριστός;
«Οὗτος ἔσται μέγας καὶ υἱὸς ὑψίστου κληθήσεται, καὶ δώσει αὐτῷ Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς τὸν θρόνον Δαυεὶδ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ, καὶ βασιλεύσει ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ἰακὼβ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔσται τέλος.» ἆρα οὖν ὑφ’ ἑνὶ τῶν καθ’ ἡμᾶς κεισόμεθα, βασιλευόμενοι διηνεκῶς καὶ ἀκαταλήκτως, ἢ ὑπὸ Θεῷ μᾶλλον ἐσόμεθα βασιλεύοντι ἡμῶν τῶν ἐν Χριστῷ; καὶ οὐχ ὡς ἔξωθεν μεσίτου τινὸς εἰς τοῦτο παραληφθέντος, ἀλλ’ ὡς δι’ Υἱοῦ καὶ ἐν Υἱῷ κατακρατοῦντος τῶν ὅλων τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρός; εἰ δὲ τοῦτο ἀληθές, Θεὸς ἄρα ὁ Χριστός.
About this text
Cyril’s court treatise on right faith for Arcadia and Marina (CPG 5219). One Son, Word made flesh — not two Christs. English from Pusey’s Greek.
English follows Pusey’s 1877 Greek of De recta fide ad Arcadiam et Marinam. OCR of that print was cleaned section by section before Pass A/B. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Pusey, De recta fide ad reginas (Oxford, 1877) (Greek · CPG 5219 §§1–100)
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.