GREAT VESPERS
Kathisma reading
“Blessed is the man…” is sung.
At Psalm 140
In Tone 3
Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.
By Your Cross, O Christ our Saviour,
the power of Death has been vanquished
and the deceit of the devil has been destroyed.
Therefore, mankind, saved by faith,
offers You hymns of praise forever.
The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.
O Lord, all creation has been enlightened by Your resurrection,
and Paradise has been reopened;
therefore, all creation extols You
and offers You hymns of praise forever.
Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!
I glorify the powers of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
and I praise the dominion of the undivided Divinity,
the consubstantial Trinity,
Who reigns forever and ever.
Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.
We adore Your precious Cross, O Christ,
and with hymns of praise we glorify Your Resurrection;
for by Your wounds we have all been healed.
In Tone 2
If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
With unworthy lips we praise the Theotokos
who is more venerable than all creation
and more holy than the Cherubim and all the angels in heaven.
She is the unshakable throne of the King.
She is the house in which the Eternal One made His abode.
She is the salvation of the world and the sanctuary of God.
In her holy memory He richly gives great mercy to the faithful.
I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
O Virgin, what awesome hymns did the apostles of the Word,
standing around your bier, offer up at that time to you?
They cried out in amazement:
The palace of the King is departing.
The holy Tabernacle is being exalted.
Lift up, O you gates, for the Portal of God will enter in joy,
and, without ceasing, she beseeches great mercy for all the world.
From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
What spiritual hymns shall we offer to you today, O all-holy One?
The whole world has been sanctified by your Dormition.
You have departed into heaven to contemplate the beauty of the Almighty.
As Mother you rejoice together with Him.
The angelic ranks solemnly accompanied you, O pure One.
Together with them, ask for peace and great mercy
for us and for the souls of the just.
In Tone 2
For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
With what eyes shall we earth-dwellers gaze upon Your image, O Christ?
The hosts of angels cannot look upon it without fear;
it flashes with rays of divine lightning.
It triumphs over the assaults of godlessness today.
It sojourns among a royal priesthood, a pious people.
Its coming brings joy to all Orthodox Christians,
who fall before it in faith and fear!
Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
How shall we creatures of dust look upon Your image, Word?
How shall we, polluted in sin, dare to gaze upon the face of our sinless God?
How shall we, paralyzed in corruption,
come before the unapproachable One?
The cherubim veil their faces, not daring to look upon You;
the seraphim who carry You cannot gaze upon Your glory!
In fear they serve You, Creator!
Do not condemn us, merciful Christ,
for we embrace Your image in faith.
Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
The praiseworthy day of the Master has come again!
He Who is enthroned on high now looks down upon us,
through the eyes of His most pure image.
He Who is above the cherubim, upon Whom none may gaze,
is made visible, as the scriptures say,
to those with whom He shares His own likeness,
for You wondrously fashioned us in Your image,
by the most pure finger of the Father,
and by worshipping You in faith, we are made pure.
In Tone 8, Glory…
O Master and Lover of mankind,
Your creation has been blessed for generations of generations
through the great depth of Your providence.
You sent to Abgar the icon of Your most venerable face
which had been fashioned by You
who are invisible to the Cherubim in Your divinity.
May we who gaze upon the icon be inflamed with Your love;
for You became incarnate,
suffered the passion willingly for our sake,
and poured out great mercy upon us.
In Tone 3, Now…
O Lady most honourable,
how can we but be rapt in wonder
at you giving birth to the Incarnate God
who, without a mother, was born of the Father before all ages?
You gave Him birth in the flesh without a father,
without a man instrumentality.
He is God and man whose two natures are intact,
neither one losing any of its properties.
Therefore, O Virgin Mother,
intercede with Him to save the souls
of those who believe and confess in true faith
that you are the Mother of God.
Aposticha
In Tone 3
O Christ, Who darkened the sun by Your passion
and enlightened all creation by Your resurrection,
accept our evening prayer; for You love mankind.
The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty. Robed is the Lord, and girt about with strength.
O Lord, Your life-giving Resurrection has enlightened the entire universe
and has revived Your creation which lay in corruption.
Therefore, we, who have been released from the curse of Adam, cry out to You:
Almighty Lord, glory to You!
For He has made the world firm, which shall not be moved.
O God, although in Your divine nature You are unchangeable,
yet in Your human nature You underwent change by suffering in the flesh.
All creation was prostrate with fear
when it saw You hanging on the Cross,
and it groaned in sorrow as it sang the praises of Your long-suffering.
But You descended into Hades and arose on the third day,
granting life and great mercy to the world.
Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.
You suffered death, O Christ, to deliver mankind from death.
And when You arose from the dead on the third day,
You enlightened the world
and resurrected all who acknowledge You as God.
In Tone 6, Glory…
You became incarnate as You willed, Lord:
You desired to assume our poverty
to show forth the riches of compassion,
by which You have deified me, who am dust!
We glorify You, Lover of mankind,
as we gaze upon the image of Your countenance.
Grant Your servants unhindered entry into Eden, Saviour,
overlooking all our transgressions.
In Tone 8, Now…
Jesus, your Son and our God, O Theotokos,
confirming His two natures,
dies as a Man and arises as God!
It was His good pleasure, Mother of God,
that you also die lest unbelievers consider His dispensation a fantasy!
You were translated to the Kingdom of heaven, celestial Bride
taken up from the earth as from your dwelling chamber.
The air was sanctified by your passage
as the earth was illumined by your giving of birth.
The apostles send you forth and the angels bear you up.
As they buried your all-pure body, singing funeral hymns for you
they gazed in awe and spoke with fear:
This change is from the right hand of the Most High,
for He dwelt within you,
and you shall never be shaken!
All-hymned Mother, do not cease to watch over us,
for we are your people and the sheep of your pasture:
We call on your name,
asking salvation and great mercy for your sake.
Troparia
In Tone 3
Let the heavens be glad, let the earth rejoice,* for the Lord has done a mighty deed with His arm.* He trampled death by death. He became the first-born of the dead;* He saved us from the abyss of Hades* and granted great mercy to the world.
In Tone 1, Glory… Now…
In giving birth you retained your virginity,* in falling asleep you did not abandon the world, O Mother of God.* You passed into life, for you are the Mother of Life,* and by your prayers* you deliver our souls from death.
DIVINE LITURGY
Troparia and Kontakia
Troparion, Tone 3: Let the heavens be glad, let the earth rejoice,* for the Lord has done a mighty deed with His arm.* He trampled death by death. He became the first-born of the dead;* He saved us from the abyss of Hades* and granted great mercy to the world.
Troparion, Tone 1: In giving birth you retained your virginity,* in falling asleep you did not abandon the world, O Mother of God.* You passed into life, for you are the Mother of Life,* and by your prayers* you deliver our souls from death.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Kontakion, Tone 3: You rose from the tomb, O compassionate Lord,* and led us out from the gates of death.* Today Adam exults and Eve rejoices,* and the prophets together with the patriarchs* unceasingly acclaim the divine might of Your power.
Now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 2: The tomb and death could not hold the Mother of God,* unceasing in her intercession and unfailing hope of patronage,* for, as the Mother of Life, she was transferred to life* by Him Who had dwelt in her ever-virgin womb.
Prokeimenon, Tone 3
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
verse: Because he has regarded the humility of His handmaid; for behold, all generations shall call me blessed. (Luke 1:46-48)
Epistle
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Alleluia, Tone 8
verse: Rise up, O Lord, to the place of Your rest, You and the ark of Your holiness.
verse: The Lord swore an oath to David, and will not go back on His word. (Psalm 131:8, 11)
Gospel
Matthew 19:16-26
Hymn to the Mother of God
Seeing the pure one’s falling asleep, angels marvelled in wonder how the Virgin could ascend from earth to heaven.
And the Irmos: O pure Virgin, in you are conquered the bounds of nature,* for childbirth remains virginal and death is betrothed to life.* Virgin after childbearing and alive and death, O Mother of God,* never cease to save your inheritance.
Communion Hymn
I will take the cup of salvation;* and I will call upon the name of the Lord.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 115:13)