Fragments on 1 Timothy · §1 · Severianus of Gabala

The Unity of the Incarnate Word

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the matter of command

Not a mixture, and the things from them are neither blended nor naturally arranged, nor are they indeed divided into two persons. So also Emmanuel, being one from two natures, is one hypostasis and one nature of the incarnate Word; neither have the things from which the ineffable union has occurred become a continuous whole, nor does he, remaining one, allow the dyad to intrude, from which division comes. For the one strictly could never become two, and if the one were to be transferred into two, it would certainly cease to be one.

Therefore, Jesus Christ existing as one—even if someone should name him man by part or say he is a man—having become flesh, is understood to be God; and if one should call him God again, he is identified as the Word having become man. For this reason, knowing him to be one and indivisible, we are necessarily compelled to use the prior definition, saying: consubstantial with the Father according to the divinity and consubstantial with us the same according to the humanity, and the same one being passible in the flesh and impassible in the divinity.

And see how the God-inspired Scripture carries this out according to the similar pattern: on the one hand, Christ is said to be handed over by the Father, and on the other hand, it is written that he himself handed himself over. And Paul, writing to the Romans, says concerning the Father: 'who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all' (Rom 8:32). But to Timothy he writes this: 'one God and mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all' (1 Tim 2:5). And behold for me the precision and accuracy of the Scripture. For there he said Christ is the proper Son of God and of the Father, and said: 'who did not spare his own Son,' showing that the one existing of the same essence is proper and not an alien.

Greek

Fragmenta in epistulam i ad Timotheum (in catenis) 1 Tim 1,1 Οὐ τέθεικεν ἐν ταῖς ἄλλαις ἐπιστολαῖς τὸ κατ' ἐπιταγήν. διὰ τί νῦν τίθησιν; ἐπειδὴ ἔμελλε νομοθετεῖν τινα καὶ ἐκκλησιαστικοὺς κανόνας ἐκτίθεσθαι. προλαβὼν πείθει, ὅτι κατ' ἐπιταγὴν θεοῦ μέλλει λέγειν. 1 Tim 1,8®9 Καὶ μὴν ἔχει ὁ νόμος τὰ πρακτέα, καὶ ἡ χάρις τὰ ἀπαγορευτέα, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τοῦ πλεονάζοντος ὠνόμασεν ἕκαστον, καὶ μάλιστα ὅτι ἐν τῇ χάριτί εἰσιν τοῦ σωτῆρος αἱ ἐντολαί–οὐ νόμοι–, ἀλλὰ τῇ προαιρέσει καταλιμπανόμεναι. ἅπερ ἐὰν μὴ γένηται, οὐ πάντως κατακέκριται ὁ μὴ πεποιηκώς, ὡσανεὶ τὸ τῆς παρθενίας κτῆμα καὶ εἴ τι τοιοῦτο ἕτερον. 1 Tim 2,5®6 Ἀλλ' ἴσως ἐρεῖ τις· πῶς θεὸν εἶναι φῂς τὸν ἀποθανόντα τοῦ Παύλου σαφῶς εἰρηκότος ἐν οἷς γέγραφε πρὸς Τιμόθεον· ἄνθρωπος Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν ἀντίλυτρον ὑπὲρ πάντων. τί οὖν; οὐκ ἀκούεις αὐτοῦ λέγοντος ὡς ὁ κύριος τῆς δόξης ἐσταύρωται; καὶ ὅτι ἐξ Ἰούδα ὁ Χριστὸς τὸ κατὰ σάρκα, ὁ ὢν ἐπὶ πάντων θεὸς εὐλογητὸς εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας ἀμήν; καὶ ὅτι Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς χθὲς καὶ σήμερον, ὁ αὐτὸς καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας; εἷς γὰρ ἦν ἐξ ἀμφοῖν θεότητός τε καὶ ἀνθρωπότητος, τελείως ἐχουσῶν κατὰ τὸν ἴδιον λόγον τῶν φύσεων, ὁμοούσιος ὢν τῷ πατρὶ κατὰ τὴν θεότητα καὶ ὁμοούσιος τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἡμῖν ὁ αὐτὸς κατὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα. καὶ γὰρ καὶ τὸν καθ' ἡμᾶς ἄνθρωπον ἐκ ψυχῆς ὄντα καὶ σώματος καὶ τελοῦντος εἰς μίαν ὑπόστασιν, ζῶον εἶναί φαμεν θνητὸν λογικόν· ἀλλὰ κατὰ μὲν τὸ σῶμα θνητόν, κατὰ δὲ ψυχὴν λογικόν. πλὴν ὅλον τὸ ζῶον θνητὸν προσηγόρευται καὶ ὅλον κέκληται λογικόν, καὶ οὔτε συγκέχυται τὰ ἐξ ὧν 337 συντέθειται φυσικῶς, οὔτε μὴν εἰς δύο πρόσωπα διῄρηται. οὕτω καὶ ὁ Ἐμμανουὴλ ἐκ δύο φύσεων εἷς ὢν καὶ μία ὑπόστασις καὶ μία φύσις αὐτοῦ τοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένη οὔτε συνέχεε τὰ ἐξ ὧν ἡ ἀπόρρητος ἕνωσις γέγονεν, οὔτε μένων εἷς δίδωσι τῇ δυάδι παρείσδυσιν ἐξ ἧς ἡ διαίρεσις· τὸ γὰρ ἓν κυρίως οὐκ ἄν ποτε γένοιτο δύο, μεταστὰν δὲ εἰς δύο τοῦ ἓν εἶναι πάντως πεπαύσεται. εἷς τοίνυν ὑπάρχων Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, κἂν ἐκ μέρους ὀνομάσειέ τις καὶ ἄνθρωπον εἴποι, σεσαρκωμένος νοεῖται θεός, καὶ ἔμπαλιν θεὸν καλέσειε, λόγος ἐνανθρωπήσας κατασημαίνεται. διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ εἰδότες αὐτὸν ἕνα καὶ ἀδιαίρετον, ἀναγκαίως κεχρήμεθα τῷ προδιορισμῷ λέγοντες ὁμοούσιον τῷ πατρὶ κατὰ τὴν θεότητα καὶ ὁμοούσιον ἡμῖν τὸν αὐτὸν κατὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα, καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν παθητὸν τῇ σαρκὶ καὶ ἀπαθῆ τῇ θεότητι. κατὰ τὸ ὅμοιον δὲ σχῆμα κἀκεῖνο τὴν θεόπνευστον γραφὴν διεξϊοῦσαν ἰδεῖν· πῆ μὲν γὰρ παραδεδόσθαι λέγεται Χριστὸς ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρός, πῆ δὲ αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν παραδεδωκέναι γέγραπται. καὶ Ῥωμαίοις δὲ ἐπιστέλλων ὁ Παῦλός φησι περὶ τοῦ πατρός· ὅς γε τοῦ ἰδίου υἱοῦ οὐκ ἐφείσατο, ἀλλὰ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν πάντων παρέδωκεν αὐτόν. Τιμοθέῳ δὲ γράφει ταυτί· εἷς θεὸς καὶ μεσίτης θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων, ἄνθρωπος Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν ἀντίλυτρον ὑπὲρ πάντων. καὶ θέα μοι τῆς γραφῆς τὸ ἀπεξεσμένον καὶ ἀκριβές. ἔνθα μὲν γὰρ ἔφησεν ἴδιον υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ πατρὸς τὸν Χριστόν, καὶ εἶπεν· ὅς γε τοῦ ἰδίου υἱοῦ οὐκ ἐφείσατο, δηλῶν ἴδιον εἶναι τὸν τῆς αὐτῆς οὐσίας ὑπάρχοντα καὶ μὴ ἀλλότριον,