Amos 9:1

Tell me, John, what do you mean when you say, "No one has ever seen God"? What shall we think about he prophets who say that they saw God? Isaiah said, "I saw the Lord sitting on a high and exalted throne." And, again, Daniel said, "I saw until the thrones were set, and the ancient of days sat." And Micah said, "I saw the God of Israel sitting on his throne." And again, another prophet said, "I saw the Lord standing on the altar, and he said unto me, 'Strike the mercy seat.' " And I can gather many similar passages to show you as witnesses of what I say.How is it, then, that John says, "No one has ever seen God"? He says this so that you may know that he is speaking of a clear knowledge and a perfect comprehension of God. All the cases cited were instances of God's condescension and accommodation. That no one of those prophets saw God's essence in its pure state is clear from the fact that each one saw him in a different way. God is a simple being; he is not composed of parts; he is without form or figure. But all these prophets saw different forms and figures. God proved this very thing through the mouth of another prophet. And he persuaded those other prophets that they did not see his essence in its exact nature when he said, "I have multiplied visions, and by the ministries of the prophets I was presented." What God was saying was, "I did not show my very essence, but I came down in condescension and accommodated myself to the weakness of their eyes."

(Chapter 9, Verse 1) I saw the Lord standing upon the altar, and he said: Strike the hinge, and let the thresholds tremble: for greed is at the head of all, and with the sword I will kill their last one. There will be no escape for them: they will flee, and no one who flees will be saved. LXX: I saw the Lord standing upon the altar, and he said: Strike upon the mercy seat, and the vestibules will be shaken: and scatter upon the heads of all, and with the sword I will kill the rest of them. He shall not flee from those who flee; and he shall not be saved from those who are saved. He who, with Ezekiel and John the Baptist, has seen the heavens opened (Ezek. I; Mat. III), and the veil that was placed before the face of Moses (Exod. XXXIV), has been taken away from his eyes, so that what is written may be fulfilled: The commandment of God is a clear light illuminating the eyes (Ps. XVIII, 9); this person will see the Lord standing upon the altar, and commanding the prophet, or, as many believe, the angel who is bound to administer the punishments for sins, to strike the hinges of the temple, or the mercy seat, and cause its lintels or vestibules to tremble. And when, he says, the temple has been dissolved and destroyed because of the wickedness of men, and my wrath has begun from my sanctuary, let everyone recognize that they cannot escape, with greed possessing all things, and that their final end is death, and no defenses can help them escape the judgment of God: and what we read according to the Septuagint, that he dispersed it among the heads of all, their heads are beautifully divided, who by their own choice have separated themselves from him who is the head of all, and have said: We have no king except Caesar (John 19:15), who with impious voice cried out: Crucify, crucify such a one. And: His blood be upon us, and upon our children. All of these things we can refer to the heretics, whose altar is struck, and all initiations and sacraments are profaned, who have greed in their heads, with the partridge crying out through them, and gathering those whom she did not bring forth, and making riches without judgment (Jer. XVII). Therefore, the Lord will also destroy his final remains or relics, so that the begun chapter may be completed, and his end will be foolish. But when the Lord strikes the hinges and wields his sword against them, there will be no one who can escape or deflect the impending sword of the Lord. And at the same time, it should be noted that, while the Lord is standing on the altar, the propitiatory or hinges of the temple are struck first, then the vestibules are shaken, thirdly the heads of all are divided, and fourthly those who remain are killed with the sword. For unless the Lord tramples the arrogance of heretics with his foot and strikes their perverse and wicked doctrine with the spiritual sword, and divides their masters, who are accepted as leaders, among themselves, and strikes them in a good way, the disciples cannot be brought to life, according to what is written: I will kill and give life: I will strike and heal (Deut. XXXII, 39). The teachers are killed and beaten so that the students may live: the heads are divided so that the other members may be healed.