6. Next there follows, “.” “Jesus” is a Hebrew word meaning “Saviour.” “Christ” is so called from “Chrism,” i.e. unction. For we read in the Books of Moses, that Auses, the son of Nave, when he was chosen to lead the people, had his name changed from “Auses” to “Jesus,” to shew that this was a name proper for princes and generals, for those, namely, who should “save” the people who followed them. Therefore, both were called “Jesus,” both the one who conducted the people, who had been brought forth out of the land of Egypt, and freed from the wanderings of the wilderness, into the land of promise, and the other, who conducted the people, who had been brought forth from the darkness of ignorance, and recalled from the errors of the world, into the kingdom of heaven.
“Christ” is a name
proper either to High Priests or Kings. For formerly both high priests
and kings were consecrated with the ointment of chrism: but these, as
mortal and corruptible, with material and corruptible ointment. Jesus
is made Christ, being anointed with the Holy Spirit, as the Scripture
saith of Him “Whom the Father hath anointed with the Holy Spirit
sent down from heaven.” And Isaiah had
prefigured the same, saying in the person of the Son, “The Spirit
of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me, He hath sent Me to
preach good tidings to the poor.”
Having shewn them what
“Jesus” is, Who saves His people, and what
“Christ” is, Who is made a High Priest for ever, let us now
see in what follows, of Whom these things are said, “His only
Son, our Lord.” Here we are taught that this Jesus, of whom we
have spoken, and this Christ, the meaning of whose name we have
expounded, is “the only Son of God” and “our
Lord.” Lest, perchance, you should think that these human names
have an earthly significance, therefore it is added that He
is “the only Son of God, our Lord.” For He is born One of
One, because there is one brightness of light, and there is one word of
the understanding. Neither does an incorporeal generation degenerate
into the plural number, or suffer division, where He Who is born is in
no wise separated from Him Who begets. He is “only” (unique), as thought is to the mind, as wisdom is to the wise, as a word is to the understanding, as valour is to the brave. For as the Father is said by the Apostle to be “alone wise,” so likewise the Son alone is called wisdom. He is then the “only Son.” And, although in glory, everlastingness, virtue, dominion, power, He is what the Father is, yet all these He hath not unoriginately as the Father, but from the Father, as the Son, without beginning and equal; and although He is the Head of all things, yet the Father is the Head of Him. For so it is written, “The Head of Christ is God.”