John 1:18

“No man hath seen God at any time, etc.] That is, God the Father, whose voice was never heard, nor his shape seen by angels or men; for though Jacob, Moses, the elders of Israel, Manoah, and his wife, are said to see God, and Job expected to see him with his bodily eyes, and the saints will see him as he is, in which will lie their great happiness; yet all seems to be understood of the second person, who frequently appeared to the Old Testament saints, in an human form, and will be seen by the saints in heaven, in his real human nature; or of God in and by him: for the essence of God is invisible, and not to be seen with the eyes of the body; nor indeed with the eyes of the understanding, so…”

“No man--"No one," in the widest sense. hath seen God--by immediate gaze, or direct intuition. in the bosom of the Father--A remarkable expression, used only here, presupposing the Son's conscious existence distinct from the Father, and expressing His immediate and most endeared access to, and absolute acquaintance with, Him. he--emphatic; As if he should say, "He and He only hath declared Him," because He only can.”

“No man hath seen God at any time - This declaration is probably made to show the superiority of the revelation of Jesus above that of any previous dispensation. It is said, therefore, that Jesus “had an intimate knowledge of God,” which neither Moses nor any of the ancient prophets had possessed. God is invisible: no human eyes have seen him; but Christ had a knowledge of God which might be expressed to our apprehension by saying that he saw him. He knew him intimately and completely, and was therefore fitted to make a fuller manifestation of him. See John 5:37; John 6:46; 1 John 4:12; Exodus 33:20; John 14:9. This passage is not meant to deny that men had witnessed “manifestations” of God,…”

“No man hath seen God - With bodily eyes: yet believers see him with the eye of faith. Who is in the bosom of the Father - The expression denotes the highest unity, and the most intimate knowledge. John 1:19”

“1:18 Moses was denied his desire to see God directly (Exod 33:18-20). Only Jesus has seen the Father, so he alone completely knows him and can tell us about him (John 3:32-35; 14:9-10). • But the unique One, who is himself God: The Son, who sees the Father, is himself God—not simply a messenger who knows something about God. John explicitly affirms Christ’s deity. Jesus shares the substance of God’s being.”

“seen: Joh 6:46; Exo 33:20; Deu 4:12; Mat 11:27; Luk 10:22; Col 1:15; Ti1 1:17; Ti1 6:16; Jo1 4:12, Jo1 4:20 the only: Joh 1:14, Joh 3:16-18; Jo1 4:9 in the: Joh 13:23; Pro 8:30; Isa 40:11; Lam 2:12; Luk 16:22, Luk 16:23 he hath: Joh 12:41, Joh 14:9, Joh 17:6, Joh 17:26; Gen 16:13, Gen 18:33, Gen 32:28-30, Gen 48:15, Gen 48:16; Exo 3:4-6; Exo 23:21, Exo 33:18-23, Exo 34:5-7; Num 12:8; Jos 5:13-15, Jos 6:1, Jos 6:2; Jdg 6:12-26; Jdg 13:20-23; Isa 6:1-3; Eze 1:26-28; Hos 12:3-5; Mat 11:27; Luk 10:22; Jo1 5:20 John 1:19”