Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts for Wednesday of the First Week of the Great Fast

LITURGY OF THE PRESANCTIFIED GIFTS

At Psalm 140

In Tone 8

Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.

O faithful, while fasting bodily,
let us also fast in spirit.
Let us loosen every bond of injustice;
let us tear apart the strong chains of violence;
let us rip up all unjust assertions;
let us give bread to the hungry
and welcome the poor and homeless to our houses,
that we may receive from Christ our God, His great mercy.

The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.

Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!

What honour and praise can fittingly be ascribed to the saints?
They bowed their necks under the sword for You,
the One who left the heavens and came down.
They shed their blood for You,
the One who took the form of a servant.
By emulating Your poverty
they humbled themselves unto death.
By their prayers, have mercy on us, O Lord,
according to Your compassion.

In Tone 2

Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.

Jesus, the true spiritual Sun,
sent you as lightning through all the world,
to overcome the darkness of error
by the brightness of your divine teachings;
O holy apostles, who have seen the Lord,
beseech Him to send His light and His mercy on us.

If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.

Elijah ascended in the divine chariot of his virtues,
and by his fasting he was carried to the heights of heaven in glory.
Strive, O my humble soul, as he did,
fast and shed all evil, malice, envy, and corrupting luxury
so that you may be delivered from all eternal pain of death
and cry out to Christ:
O Lord, glory be to You!

In Tone 5

I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.

O divine apostles,
fervent intercessors for the world and defenders of the faithful.
You received from Christ our God the boldness to intercede for us.
We beseech you that we may pass this solemn time of the Fast untroubled
and receive the grace of the consubstantial Trinity.
O great and glorious preachers, pray for our souls.

In Tone 8

From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.

What shall we call you, O Apostle?
Heaven, for you have confessed the glory of God?
A River, since you mystically give drink to all creation?
A Star that illumines the Church?
A Chalice pouring out the holy drink?
An Intimate of Christ, dwelling equally with the angels?
Pray that our souls be saved.

For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.

Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.

O Apostle and Preacher of God,
you came forth from Christ like a shining arrow.
You wounded His enemies,
and you manifestly healed our wounded souls.
Therefore, we praise you fervently, and we celebrate your Feast-day today.
Pray that our souls be saved.

Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.

O glorious Apostle who sees God,
your feet have become beautiful, pursuing the path of preaching.
You made narrow the way of the wicked
by the width of your divine knowledge of the Word,
Who is revealed in the coarseness of the flesh.
The most glorious Lord chose you as His disciple, O blessed one.
Pray to Him that our souls be saved.

Glory… Now…

By your great power, O pure one,
deliver us from sorrows and save us from death!
Protect us from every attack of the devil;
free us from every affliction.
Pray without ceasing to your Son,
that He may deliver us from every oppression.

Prokeimenon I, Tone 5
You, O Lord, will guard us, and will keep us,* from this generation, and forever!
verse: Save me, O Lord, for there is no longer left a just man.

Reading I
Genesis 1:24-2:3
God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: the quadrupeds, the creeping things, and the wild animals of the earth according to their kind.” It was so. So God made the wild animals of the earth according to their kind, the cattle according to their kind, and all the creeping things on earth according to their kind. God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of heaven, over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that moves on the earth.” So God made man; in the image of God He made him; male and female He made them. Then God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of heaven, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing herb that sows seed on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. I also give every green plant as food for all the wild animals of the earth, for all the birds of heaven, and for everything that creeps on the earth in which is the breath of life.” It was so. Then God saw everything He had made, and indeed, it was very good. So evening and morning were the sixth day.

Thus heaven and earth and all their adornment were finished. And on the seventh day God finished the works He made, and He rested on the seventh day from all the works He made. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His works God began to make.

Prokeimenon II, Tone 6
Look at me and answer me* O Lord my God!
verse: How long, O Lord, will You forget me? How long will You hide Your face from me?

Reading II
Proverbs 2:1-22
My son, if you receive the words of my commandment
And hide them within yourself,
Your ear will be obedient to wisdom,
And you will incline your heart to understanding;
You will entrust it to your son as an admonition.
For if he calls upon wisdom,
And you utter your voice for understanding;
If you seek perception with a strong voice,
If you seek her as silver
And search for her as treasure,
Then you will understand the fear of the Lord
And find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom,
And from His face come knowledge and understanding;
And He stores up salvation for the upright;
He will protect their journey,
That He might guard the ways of His ordinances;
And He will carefully guard the way of those who reverence Him.
Then you will understand righteousness and judgment,
And accomplish successfully every good path for yourself.
For if wisdom comes into your mind,
And the perception in your soul seems to be good,
Then good counsel will guard you,
And holy thinking will keep you;
That it might rescue you from an evil way
And from a man who speaks nothing trustworthy.
Woe to those who forsake the paths of uprightness
So they may walk in the ways of darkness,
Who delight in evils
And rejoice in evil perversion,
Whose ways are crooked
And their paths devious,
So they may cause you to be far from the straight way
And a stranger to righteous judgment.
My son, do not lay hold of evil counsel,
Nor forsake the teaching of your youth
And forget the divine covenant;
For it establishes its house with death,
And its paths beside Hades with the dead;
All who journey there do not return,
Nor do they lay hold of straight paths;
For they do not comprehend the years of life.
For if they walked in good paths,
They would find the smooth paths of righteousness.
The inhabitants of the land will be good,
And the simple will be left in it;
For the upright will dwell in the land,
And the holy will be left in it.