Great Vespers
At Psalm 140
In Tone 1
- Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!
As witness of revelations beyond words
and interpreter of the sublime mysteries of God,
O son of Zebedee,
you have written the gospel of Christ for us.
You taught us to glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.
As witness of revelations beyond words
and interpreter of the sublime mysteries of God,
O son of Zebedee,
you have written the gospel of Christ for us.
You taught us to glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
As witness of revelations beyond words
and interpreter of the sublime mysteries of God,
O son of Zebedee,
you have written the gospel of Christ for us.
You taught us to glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
Divinely moved lyre of heavenly canticles,
you are the mystical writer
and the God-inspired voice melodiously singing the divine hymns.
Pray for the salvation of our souls.
- From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
Divinely moved lyre of heavenly canticles,
you are the mystical writer
and the God-inspired voice melodiously singing the divine hymns.
Pray for the salvation of our souls.
- For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Divinely moved lyre of heavenly canticles,
you are the mystical writer
and the God-inspired voice melodiously singing the divine hymns.
Pray for the salvation of our souls.
- Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
O beloved of God, with your thundering voice
you declared the wisdom of God.
You constantly proclaimed aloud the hidden word by frequently saying:
In the beginning was the Word.
You have illumined all with the knowledge of God.
- Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
O beloved of God, with your thundering voice
you declared the wisdom of God.
You constantly proclaimed aloud the hidden word by frequently saying:
In the beginning was the Word.
You have illumined all with the knowledge of God.
In Tone 2, Glory…
Let all the human race give the praise that is due to John, the son of thunder,
the virgin apostle and the bearer of God’s message,
the chief theologian and the first to proclaim the truths
which are contained in the teachings of divine Wisdom.
For always being filled with that which is divine, he said:
In the beginning was the Word, not separated from the Father
but equal to the Father according to His nature,
thereby showing us the right worship of the Holy Trinity.
He has also shown us that the Word was with the Father, the Creator of all,
and that He bears life and has shown us the true light.
O awesome marvel! O Wisdom!
John was filled with love for God;
he was also filled with glory, honour, and faith;
he was the preacher of our pure faith.
Because of this, we shall obtain eternal blessing on the day of judgment.
Now…
O Virgin, the shadow of the Law passed away
with the realization of grace.
For as the bush had burned without being consumed,
so you gave birth while a virgin
and you remained a virgin.
Instead of the pillar of fire there rose the Sun of Justice.
Instead of Moses, Christ God came forth,
the Saviour of our souls.
Readings
(1) I John 3:21- 4:6; (2) I John 4:11-16; (3) I John 4:20-5:5
At the Lytia
In Tone 1
O Apostle, rivers of theology poured out from your precious mouth.
The Church of God has drunk from them
and in true faith adores the consubstantial Trinity.
O John the Divine, pray to the Holy Trinity
to strengthen the Church and to save our souls.
The garden of purity, the fragrant myrrh,
has again come upon us in the present feast
so that we may cry aloud:
O John, the apostle who reclined on the bosom of the Master,
and made the word fall on the world like rain,
you have guarded the Virgin as the most cherished one.
Ask Christ to grant us his great mercy.
As an eye-witness of the ineffable mysteries,
you cried out that the eternal Word was in God and that He is God.
O Apostle John, you reclined upon the breast of Christ.
O delight of the Trinity,
O unshakable fortitude of Ephesus and Patmos, help us!
O blessed Theologian, pray that those who honour you faithfully
will be delivered from the wicked enemies
of both body and spirit.
O Disciple of the Saviour, O celibate and theologian,
Christ our God entrusted the Virgin Theotokos to you.
You protected her as the most cherished one.
Therefore, intercede that our souls may be saved.
In Tone 4, Glory…
O beloved Disciple, at the Lord’s supper
you reclined on the breast of Christ the Master.
From that place you understood things ineffable,
and your heavenly voice thundered to all:
In the beginning was the Word;
the Word was in God’s presence, and the Word was God.
The true light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world.
Christ is God and the Saviour of our souls.
Now…
The Son, glorified on high with the Father and the Spirit by the Cherubim,
desired to restore Adam.
He completely and ineffably emptied himself in your womb, O ever-praised Theotokos;
and having shone forth from you,
He has enlightened the world with his divinity.
Christ the Lord and Saviour of our souls,
having divinized the human race,
led us back to heaven.
Aposticha
In Tone 4
You are the theologian who spoke of the Son of the Most High.
He is co-eternal and consubstantial with the Father,
Light from unchangeable Light, and Image of the very person of the Father,
shining from Him eternally and without change,
the Creator and Lord of all.
O beloved, you have preached about Christ our God to the world,
who is the Light leading us out of darkness.
Through all the world their voice resounds; their message reaches to the ends of the earth.
Having received the light of the Comforter
and having been enlightened by Him,
O beloved, as theologian
you taught that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father
and was manifested to mankind by the Son.
He is equal in holiness, essence, and majesty
with the eternal Father and the Word of God.
We, therefore, venerate you in hymns as the blessed preacher of our faith.
Keep it firm by your prayers to the Lord, our God.
The heavens proclaim your wonders, O Lord; the assembly of your holy ones proclaims your truth.
Having ascended to the height of theology,
you have learned the ineffable mysteries of God:
that the essence of the Godhead is one;
one glory, one kingdom, and one dominion,
ever-divided into three Persons,
yet undivided in essence,
united in a divine union without confusion.
Thus you gloriously proclaimed the undivided Trinity.
O Theologian, entreat God to save and enlighten our souls.
In Tone 6, Glory…
O apostle of Christ, O evangelist, O theologian,
you were the mystic of the ineffable mysteries.
You proclaimed to us the untold teachings of Wisdom.
You clarified for the faithful
that the Word was present to God in the beginning.
You cast aside the words of the heretics
and rejected their false teachings.
You appeared as the favourite and beloved friend of Christ,
even as the thundering Isaiah and Moses who saw God.
Having boldness before Him, earnestly pray for our souls.
Now…
Christ the Lord, our Creator and Redeemer,
came forth from your womb, O most pure Virgin.
He clothed himself in our human flesh
to set us free from the original curse of Adam.
Therefore, O Mary, we praise you, without ceasing,
as the true Virgin Mother of God,
and we sing with the angels:
Rejoice, O Lady, advocate, protector, and salvation of our souls.
Troparion
In Tone 2
O beloved apostle of Christ our God,
hasten, deliver a people without defense.
He who received you when you leaned upon His breast accepts you as you bow in prayer.
Implore Him, O Theologian, to scatter the cloud of nations that besets us,
asking peace and great mercy for us.
DIVINE LITURGY
Troparia and Kontakia
Troparion, Tone 2: O beloved apostle of Christ our God,* hasten, deliver a people without defense.* He who received you when you leaned upon His breast accepts you as you bow in prayer.* Implore Him, O Theologian, to scatter the cloud of nations that besets us,* asking peace and great mercy.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 2: O virgin apostle, who can recount your mighty works?* For you pour out wonders and healings* and you pray for our souls as Theologian and friend of Christ.
Prokeimenon, Tone 8
Their utterance has gone forth into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.
verse: The heavens tell the glory of God, and the firmament declares the work of His hand. (Psalm 18:5,2)
Epistle
1 John 4:12-19
Alleluia, Tone 1
verse: The heavens shall confess our wonders, O Lord, and Your truth in the church of the saints.
verse: God is glorified in the assembly of the saints. (Psalm 88:6,8)
Gospel
John 19:25-27; 21:24-25
Communion Hymn
Their utterance has gone forth into all the earth,* and their word unto the ends of the world.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 18:5)