That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
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Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
Who is he that with hands does handle the Word, except because The Word was made flesh, and dwelt in us? Now this Word which was made flesh that it might be handled, began to be flesh, of the Virgin Mary: but not then began the Word, for the Apostle says, That which was from the beginning. See whether his epistle does not bear witness to his gospel, where ye lately heard, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God. John 1:1 Perchance, Concerning the word of life one may take as a sort of expression concerning Christ, not the very body of Christ which was handled with hands. See what follows: And the Life was manifested. Christ therefore is the word of life. And whereby manifested? For it was from the beginning, only not manifested to men: but it was manifested to angels, who saw it and fed on it as their bread. But what says the Scripture? Man did eat angels' bread. Well then the Life was manifested in the flesh; because it exhibited in manifestation, that that which can ...
Nativity, His passion, His resurrection, His conversation with His disciples, and His twofold advent,-the first in the humiliation of rejection, which is now past, and the second in the glory of royal power, which is yet in the future. What marvel is it, then, that John brings forward these several things
Every one that believeth, with a living faith, which extends itself to charity, and worketh by love, that Jesus is the Christ, i.e, the Messiah, the Saviour and Redeemer of the world, is born of God, by a divine and spiritual birth, which takes place by faith, love, and grace, by which a man becomes not only a friend, but a son and heir of God, and a partaker of the Divine nature ( 2 Peter 1:5).
And every one . . . loveth also Him who is born of Him. Born: 1Christ the Son of God is properly He who is born of God the Father2d Born of God applies to every believer, who is adopted of God through the grace of Christ. And this is S. John"s reasoning, by which he proves that our neighbours ought to be loved: Whosoever loveth God the Father who begat, loveth equally God the Son who was begotten. But he who loveth God the Son loveth also all the other sons of God, as being His brethren and members. Therefore he who loveth God the Father loveth also all the children of God who are born of Him....
That which was from the beginning, &c. The beginning of this Epistle corresponds with the beginning of St. John"s Gospel. Both here and there he sets forth the eternity and the Godhead of Christ, and next His Incarnation, these being the two chief Mysteries, and the cardinal points, of the whole Christian faith.
The word "was" points, says St. Basil, "to eternity," "that thus we might understand," says Bede, "that the Word which was coeternal with the Father was before all time," for whatever time you may assign, or imagine beforehand, it is true to say that the Word then was; thousands, or millions of years, or ever the world was, for He was before any imaginable number of years, even from all eternity. Nor does it mean merely that He was before the beginning of the world, and of time, but that even then He was from all past eternity. And we speak of the Word in the imperfect, and not in the past time, to signify that He still exists. So St. Cyril, Chrysostom, Theophylact, and others...
Et vita manifesta est. This corresponds to, in ipso vita erat Ver. 8. St. Augustine, lib. de Nat. et Gra. chap. xxxvii. Exceptâ S. V. Mariâ, de quâ propter honorem Domini, null am prorsus, cum de peccato agitur, haberi volo mentionem.
The first two verses and part of the third have a great conformity with the beginning of St. John's gospel. The construction is somewhat obscure, unless we observe that the second verse is to be taken by way of a parenthesis, and the sense is not complete till these words, we declare to you The whole may be expressed in this literal paraphrase: We declare and preach to you the eternal and always living word, which was from the and manifested himself to us, when he took upon him our human nature, and was made flesh). This word I say, incarnate, we have seen with our eyes, we have heard him preach his gospel, we have touched his true body with our hands, as we witness and declare to you, that you may have fellowship with us, and be made partakers of the graces which God came from heaven to bestow upon mankind, to make us his adoptive sons and heirs of heaven. (Witham)
"The evangelist, on the other hand, has not prefixed his name even to the catholic epistle; but without any circumlocution, he has commenced at once with the mystery of the divine revelation itself in these terms: "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes."
Read the testimony of John: "That which we have seen, which we have heard, which we have looked upon with our eyes, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life."
But the very same apostles testify that they had both seen and "handled "Christ.
"That "says John, "which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life."
But what is that which, in a certain way, has been grasped by hand.
To God their beauty, to God their youth (is dedicated). With Him they live; with Him they converse; Him they "handle"
