Now we are to examine another fact and dogma, neglected by most people, but in my judgment well worth enquiring into. To Whom was that Blood offered that was shed for us, and why was It shed? I mean the precious and famous Blood of our God and High priest and Sacrifice. We were detained in bondage by the Evil One, sold under sin, and receiving pleasure in exchange for wickedness. Now, since a ransom belongs only to him who holds in bondage, I ask to whom was this offered, and for what cause? If to the Evil One, fie upon the outrage! If the robber receives ransom, not only from God, but a ransom which consists of God Himself, and has such an illustrious payment for his tyranny, a payment for whose sake it would have been right for him to have left us alone altogether. But if to the Father, I ask first, how? For it was not by Him that we were being oppressed; and next, On what principle did the Blood of His Only begotten Son delight the Father, Who would not receive even Isaac, when he was being offered by his Father, but changed the sacrifice, putting a ram in the place of the human victim? Is it not evident that the Father accepts Him, but neither asked for Him nor demanded Him; but on account of the Incarnation, and because Humanity must be sanctified by the Humanity of God, that He might deliver us Himself, and overcome the tyrant, and draw us to Himself by the mediation of His Son, Who also arranged this to the honour of the Father, Whom it is manifest that He obeys in all things? So much we have said of Christ; the greater part of what we might say shall be reverenced with silence.
St. Gregory the Theologian (+390), Oration 45 (interpreted by St. Nikodemos of the Holy Mountain (+1809) in the Eortodromion thus: "...then he resolves this perplexity and rightly judges that the Father accepted the blood of the Son, not because He demanded it from the Son or needed it, but accepted it through dispensation and because man needed sanctification by the humanity of Christ...") (See also St. Mark of Ephesus's words below, from a work beginning with, "Already with the great father, Gregory the Theologian, the perplexity regarding the Sovereign Blood was considered: to whom it was brought and how. However, since the teacher liked to be brief in his speeches, and in itself the holiday word did not allow enough time to be devoted to such research, he resolved the difficulty in a few words and rushed on. But you, moved by your ordinary love for knowledge and questions of others, ask us, as far as possible, to give a complete and detailed solution of this perplexity. So… we affirm the following.…")