Readers’ Daily Matins
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Glory to You, our God. Glory to You.
O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth: You are everywhere filling all things; Treasury of blessings and Giver of Life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One!
Holy God! Holy Mighty! Holy Immortal! Have mercy on us.
Holy God! Holy Mighty! Holy Immortal! Have mercy on us.
Holy God! Holy Mighty! Holy Immortal! Have mercy on us.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
O Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us!
O Lord, cleanse us from our sins!
O Master, pardon our transgressions!
O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Your Name’s sake.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Come, let us worship God, our King!
Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ, our King and our God!
Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ Himself, our King and our God!
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men! O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall proclaim Your praise.
Morning Psalms
Monday Psalm 3
Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. Many are they who say of me, “There is no help for him in God.” But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One Who lifts up my head. cried to the Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill. Ilay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me. will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around. Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God! For You have struck all my enemies on the cheekbone; You have broken the teeth of the ungodly. Salvation belongs to the Lord. Your blessing is upon Your people.
Tuesday Psalm 38
O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your wrath, nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure! For Your arrows pierce me deeply, and Your hand presses me down. There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your anger, Nor is there any health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me. My wounds are foul and festering because of my foolishness. I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are full of inflammation, and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and severely broken; I groan because of the turmoil of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before You; and my sighing is not hidden from You. My heart pants, my strength fails me; as for the light of my eyes, it also has gone from me. My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague, and my kinsmen stand afar off. Those also who seek my life lay snares for me; those who seek my hurt speak of destruction, and plan deception all the day long. But I, like a deaf man, do not hear; and I am like a mute who does not open his mouth. Thus I am like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth is no response. For in You, O Lord, I hope; You will hear, O Lord my God. For I said, “Hear me, lest they rejoice over me, lest, when my foot slips, they magnify themselves against me.” For I am ready to fall, and my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin. But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong; and those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied. Those also who render evil for good, they are my adversaries, because I follow what is good. Do not forsake me, O Lord; O my God, be not far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!
Wednesday Psalm 63
O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You. Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches. Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me. But those who seek my life, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth. They shall fall by the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals. But the king shall rejoice in God; everyone who swears by Him shall glory; but the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped.
Thursday Psalm 88
O Lord, God of my salvation, I have cried out day and night before You. Let my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my cry. For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to the grave. I am counted with those who go down to the pit; I am like a man who has no strength, Adrift among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, and who are cut off from Your hand. You have laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the depths. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and You have afflicted me with all Your waves. You have put away my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an abomination to them; I am shut up, and I cannot get out; My eye wastes away because of affliction. Lord, I have called daily upon You; I have stretched out my hands to You. Will You work wonders for the dead? Shall the dead arise and praise You? Shall Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or Your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Shall Your wonders be known in the dark? And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But to You I have cried out, O Lord, and in the morning my prayer comes before You. Lord, why do You cast off my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me? I have been afflicted and ready to die from my youth up; I suffer Your terrors; I am distraught. Your fierce wrath has gone over me; Your terrors have cut me off. They came around me all day long like water; they engulfed me altogether. Loved one and friend You have put far from me, and my acquaintances into darkness.
Friday Psalm 103
Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children’s children, To such as keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them. The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules overall. Bless the Lord, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word. Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, you ministers of His, who do His pleasure. Bless the Lord, all His works, in all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Saturday Psalm 143
Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications! In Your faithfulness answer me, and in Your righteousness. Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no one living is righteous. For the enemy has persecuted my soul; he has crushed my life to the ground; he has made me dwell in darkness, like those who have long been dead. Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is distressed. I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I muse on the work of Your hands. I spread out my hands to You; my soul longs for You like a thirsty land. Answer me speedily, O Lord; my spirit fails! Do not hide Your face from me, lest I be like those who go down into the pit. Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I trust; cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You. Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies; in You I take shelter. Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness. Revive me, O Lord, for Your name’s sake! For Your righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble. In Your mercy cut off my enemies, and destroy all those who afflict my soul; for I am Your servant.
After The Psalm
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
Commemoration Of The Living
O Lord Jesus Christ our God, Who for the sake of Your eternal mercy and lovingkindness became man, and suffered crucifixion and death for the salvation of all; Who rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, and sit on the right hand of the Father, where You hear the prayers of all who call upon You humbly and with their whole heart: incline Your ear to us, and hearken to the prayer which Your unworthy servants offer as a spiritual sacrifice for all Your people.
Remember first of all Your Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, which You have purchased with Your precious blood. Strengthen it, multiply it, keep it in peace, and do not allow the gates of hell to stand against it. Heal the schisms of the churches, stop the raging of the heathen, root out and cleanse all heresies, destroying them by the power of Your Holy Spirit.
Have mercy, O Lord, upon our president, and all in civil authority, and save them, together with the armed forces of our country. Give them peace and continual victory over injustice and evil in all places. May they keep Your holy Church secure, that all Your people may live calm and ordered lives in Your sight, in true faith and prayer, with godly deeds.
Have mercy, O Lord, upon the Orthodox patriarchs and metropolitans, the archbishops and bishops, the priests and deacons, and the whole order of Your Church’s clergy. Save them whom You have established to feed Your flock, and by their prayers have mercy on us sinners, and save us.
Have mercy, O Lord, on our spiritual fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and children, and save them, and by their holy prayers forgive us our transgressions.
Have mercy, O Lord, on our parents, and save them, together with our brothers and sisters, our children, our relatives and our friends. Grant them Your blessing both here and in the life to come.
Have mercy, O Lord, on the old and the young, the needy, the orphans and widows, and all who are in sickness and sorrow, distress and affliction, oppression and captivity, in prison and confinement. Save them, together with Your servants who are under persecution for Your sake and for the sake of the Orthodox faith.Remember them, visit them, strengthen and comfort them, and by Your power grant them speedy relief, freedom and deliverance.
Have mercy, O Lord, on all who travel, and save all those who are sent on duty: our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and children, all our loved ones and all Orthodox Christians.
Have mercy, O Lord, on our enemies: save all those who envy us, wish us evil or deal unjustly with us. May they not perish because of us sinners. Enlighten, O Lord, with the truth of Your holy wisdom all who have gone astray from the Orthodox faith, led by destructive heresies, and unite them once more to Your Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. (Add Specific Prayer Requests For The Living.)
Commemoration Of The Departed
Remember, O Lord, those who have departed this life: all Orthodox patriarchs, metropolitans, archbishops, bishops and all who served You in the priesthood and ministry of the Church and in the monastic order, and grant them rest with Your saints in Your eternal kingdom.
Remember, O Lord, the souls of Your servants now fallen asleep: our parents, family and friends. Forgive them all their sins, committed knowingly or unknowingly; grant them Your kingdom, a portion in Your eternal blessing and the enjoyment of Your unending life.
Remember, O Lord, all who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection and of eternal life: our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and children, all our loved ones and Orthodox Christians throughout the world. Place them with Your saints before the light of Your countenance and have mercy on us, for You are good and love mankind. (Add Specific Prayer Requests For The Departed.)
God Is The Lord
Refrain: God is the Lord and has revealed Himself to us! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!
Verse: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, and His steadfast love endures forever.
Refrain
Verse: All nations surrounded me; in the Name of the Lord, I withstood them.
Refrain
Verse: I shall not die, but live, and recount the deeds of the Lord.
Refrain
Verse: The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing and is marvelous in our eyes.
Refrain
Troparia
Sunday
Troparion of the Resurrection (Tone of the Week)
Refer to Supplementary Prayers.
Monday
St. Michael and All Angels (Tone Four)
O Commander of the heavenly hosts, We who are unworthy beseech you ceaselessly That you would encompass us with the shelter of your prayers And cover us beneath the wings of your immaterial glory. We fall down before you crying out: “Protect us from all harm, O Prince of the powers on high!”
Tuesday
Forerunner And Baptist John (Tone Two)
The memory of the righteous is worthy of praise, But you, O Forerunner, are well pleased by the Lord’s own witness. You were revealed as greater than the prophets, For you baptized in the waters Him whom they foretold. Therefore, having fought and suffered for the Truth, You proclaimed to those in the tombs the Gospel of the incarnate God, Who takes away the sins of the world and grants us great mercy.
Wednesday
Holy And Life‑Giving Cross (Tone One)
O Lord, save Your people, And bless Your inheritance. Grant victories to the Orthodox Christians Over their adversaries. And by virtue of Your Cross, Preserve Your habitation.
Thursday
Holy Apostles And St. Nicholas (Tone Three)
O holy Apostles, Intercede with our merciful God To grant our souls forgiveness of our sins!
Friday
Holy And Life‑Giving Cross (Tone One)
O Lord, save Your people, And bless Your inheritance. Grant victories to the Orthodox Christians Over their adversaries. And by virtue of Your Cross, Preserve Your habitation.
Saturday
The Theotokos, All Saints, The Faithful Departed (Tone Two)
Apostles, martyrs, and prophets, Holy hierarchs, saints and righteous, Having fought the good fight and kept the Faith, You have boldness toward the Savior. Intercede for us with Him for He is good, and pray that He may save our souls.
Prokeimenon Of The Day
Sunday
Matins Prokeimenon (Tone Of The Week)
Refer To Supplementary Prayers.
Monday
Prokeimenon From Psalm 104 (Tone 4)
Prokeimenon: He makes his angels spirits and His ministers a flame of fire! Verse: Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, You are very great!
Tuesday
Prokeimenon From Psalm 64 (Tone 7)
Prokeimenon: The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord, and shall hope in Him. Verse: Hear my voice, O God, when I pray to You.
Wednesday
Prokeimenon From The Magnificat (Tone 3)
Prokeimenon: My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
Verse: For He has regarded the lowly state of His handmaiden; for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
Thursday
Prokeimenon From Psalm 19 (Tone 8)
Prokeimenon: Their proclamation has gone out into all the earth and their words to the end of the universe!
Verse: The heavens are telling the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork.
Friday
Prokeimenon From Psalm 99 (Tone 7)
Prokeimenon: Extol the Lord our God; * worship at His footstool, for it is holy! Verse: The Lord reigns; let the peoples tremble!
Saturday
Prokeimenon From Psalm 32 (Tone 8)
Prokeimenon: Be glad in the Lord * and rejoice, O you righteous!
Verse: Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Let Every Breath Praise
The Lord Let every breath praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary! Praise Him in His mighty firmament! Let every breath praise the Lord!
The Daily Gospel
The reading is from the Gospel according to – (name of Gospel lesson) Glory to You, O Lord, glory to You!
The Gospel for the day is read.
Glory to You, O Lord, glory to You!
Psalm 51
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight ‑ that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me. Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which You have broken may rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with Your generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners shall be converted to You. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth Your praise. For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart ‑ these, O God, You will not despise. Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion; build the walls of Jerusalem. Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering; then they shall offer bulls on Your altar.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! Glory to You, O God!
The Canon Of Biblical Odes
Sunday Ode 1 The Song Of Moses (Exodus 15:1‑18)
I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea! The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is His name. Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has cast into the sea; his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea. The depths have covered them; they sank to the bottom like a stone. Your right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power; Your right hand, O Lord, has dashed the enemy in pieces. And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath which consumed them like stubble. And with the blast of Your nostrils the waters were gathered together; the floods stood upright like a heap; and the depths congealed in the heart of the sea. The enemy said, “I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my desire shall be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.” You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them; they sank like lead in the mighty waters. Who is like You O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? You stretched out Your right hand; the earth swallowed them. You in Your mercy have led forth the people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them in Your strength to Your holy habitation. The people will hear and be afraid; sorrow will take hold of the inhabitants of Palestine. Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling will take hold of them; all the inhabitants of Canaan will melt away. Fear and dread will fall on them; by the greatness of Your arm they will be as still as a stone, till Your people pass over, O Lord, till the people pass over whom You have purchased. You will bring them in and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which You have made for Your own dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, Which your hands have established. The Lord shall reign forever and ever.
Monday Ode 2 The Song Of Moses (Deuteronomy 32:1‑43)
Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching drop as the rain, my speech distill as the dew, as raindrops on the tender herb, and as showers on the grass. For I proclaim the name of the Lord: ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He. They have corrupted themselves; they are not His children, because of their blemish: a perverse and crooked generation. Do you thus deal with the Lord, O foolish and unwise people? Is He not your Father, who bought you? Has He not made you and established you? Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations. Ask your father, and he will show you; your elders, and they will tell you: When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. For the Lord’s portion is His people; Jacob is the place of His inheritance. He found him in a desert land and in the wasteland, a howling wilderness; He encircled him, He instructed him, He kept him as the apple of His eye. As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreading out its wings, taking them up, carrying them on its wings, So the Lord alone led him, and there was no foreign god with him. He made him ride in the heights of the earth, that he might eat the produce of the fields; He made him to draw honey from the rock, and oil from the flinty rock; Curds from the cattle, and milk of the flock, with fat of lambs; and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the choicest wheat; and you drank wine, the blood of the grapes. But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; you grew fat, you grew thick, you are covered with fat; then he forsook God who made him, and scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation. They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods; with abominations they provoked Him to anger. They sacrificed to demons, not to God, to gods they did not know, to new gods, new arrivals that your fathers did not fear. Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful, and have forgotten the God who fathered you. And when the Lord saw it, He spurned them, because of the provocation of His sons and His daughters. And He said: “I will hide My face from them, I will see what their end will be, for they are a perverse generation, children in whom is no faith. They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God; they have moved Me to anger by their foolish idols. But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation; I will move them to anger by a foolish nation. For a fire is kindled in My anger, and shall burn to the lowest hell; it shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains. I will heap disasters upon them; I will spend My arrows upon them. They shall be wasted with hunger, devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction; I will also send against them the teeth of beasts, with the poison of serpents of the dust. The sword shall destroy outside; there shall be terror within for the young man and virgin, the nursing child with the man of gray hairs. I would have said, ‘I will dash them in pieces, I will make the memory of them to cease from among men,’ Had I not feared the wrath of the enemy, lest their adversaries should misunderstand, lest they should say, ‘Our hand is high; and it is not the Lord who has done all this.’” For they are a nation void of counsel, nor is there any understanding in them. Oh, that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end! How could one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had surrendered them? For their rock is not like our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom and of the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of serpents, and the cruel venom of cobras. “Is this not laid up in store with Me, sealed up among My treasures? Vengeance is Mine, and recompense; their foot shall slip in due time; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things to come hasten upon them.” For the Lord will judge His people and have compassion on His servants, when He sees that their power is gone, and there is no one remaining, bond or free. He willsay: “Where are their gods, the rock in which they sought refuge? Who ate the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink offering? Let them rise and help you, and be your refuge. Now see that I, even I, am He, and there is no God besides Me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; nor is there any who can deliver from My hand. For I lift My hand to heaven, and say, ‘As I live forever, If I whet My glittering sword, and My hand takes hold on judgment, I will render vengeance to My enemies, and repay those who hate Me. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, and My sword shall devour flesh, with the blood of the slain and the captives, from the heads of the leaders of the enemy.’” Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; for He will avenge the blood of His servants, and render vengeance to His adversaries; He will provide atonement for His land and His people.
Tuesday Ode 3 The Song Of Hannah (I Samuel 2: 1 ‑10)
And Hannah prayed and said: My heart rejoices in the Lord; my horn is exalted in the Lord. I smile at my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation. There is none holy like the Lord, for there is none besides You, nor is there any rock like our God. Talk no more so very proudly; let no arrogance come from your mouth, for the Lord is the God of knowledge; and by Him actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty men are broken, and those who stumbled are girded with strength. Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, and those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has borne seven, and she who has many children has become feeble. The Lord kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up. The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the beggar from the ash heap, to set them among princes and make them inherit the throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and He has set the world upon them. He will guard the feet of His saints, but the wicked shall be silent in darkness. For by strength no man shall prevail. The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces; from heaven He will thunder against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. He will give strength to His king, and exalt the horn of His anointed.
Wednesday Ode 4 The Song Of Habbakuk(Habbakuk 3:2‑19)
O Lord, I have heard your speech and was afraid; O Lord, revive Your work in the midst of the years! In the midst of the years make it known; in wrath remember mercy. God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise. His brightness was like the light; He had rays flashing from His hand, and there His power was hidden. Before Him went pestilence, and fever followed at His feet. He stood and measured the earth; He looked and startled the nations. And the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills bowed. His ways are everlasting. I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; the curtains of the land of Midian trembled. O Lord, were You displeased with the rivers, was Your anger against the rivers, was Your wrath against the sea, that You rode on Your horses, Your chariots of salvation? Your bow was made quite ready; oaths were sworn over Your arrows. You divided the earth with rivers. The mountains saw You and trembled; the overflowing of the water passed by. The deep uttered its voice, and lifted its hands on high. The sun and moon stood still in their habitation; at the light of Your arrows they went, at the shining of Your glittering spear. You marched through the land in indignation; you trampled the nations in anger. You went forth for the salvation of Your people, for salvation with Your Anointed. You struck the head from the house of the wicked, by laying bare from foundation to neck. You thrust through with his own arrows the head of his villages. They came out like a whirlwind to scatter me; their rejoicing was like feasting on the poor in secret. You walked through the sea with Your horses, through the heap of great waters. When I heard, my body trembled; my lips quivered at the voice; rottenness entered my bones; and I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble. When He comes up to the people, He will invade them with his troops. Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls ‑ Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength; he will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.
Thursday Ode 5 The Song Of Isaiah (Isaiah 26:9‑21 , Septuagint)
My spirit seeks Thee very early in the morning, O God, for Thy commandments are a light on the earth: learn righteousness, ye that dwell upon the earth. For the ungodly one is put down: no one who will not learn righteousness on the earth shall be able to do the truth: let the ungodly be taken away, that he see not the glory of the Lord. O Lord, Thine arm is exalted, yet they knew it not: but when they know they shall be ashamed: jealousy shall seize upon an untaught nation, and now fire shall devour the adversaries. O Lord our God, give us peace: for Thou hast rendered to us all things. O Lord our God, take possession of us: O Lord, we know not any other beside Thee: we name Thy name. But the dead shall not see life, neither shall physicians by any means raise them up: therefore Thou hast brought wrath upon them, and slain them, and hast taken away every male of them. Bring more evils upon them, O Lord; Bring more evils on the glorious ones of the earth. Lord, in affliction I remembered Thee; Thy chastening was to us with small affliction. And as a woman in travail draws nigh to be delivered, and cries out in her pain; so have we been to Thy beloved. We have conceived, O Lord, because of Thy fear, and have been in pain, and have brought forth the breath of Thy salvation, which we have wrought upon the earth: we shall not fall, but all that dwell upon the land shall fall. The dead shall rise, and they that are in the tombs shall be raised, and they that are in the earth shall rejoice: for the dew from Thee is healing to them: but the land of the ungodly shall perish. Go, my people, enter into thy closets, shut thy door, hide thyself for a little season, until the anger of the Lord have passed away. For behold, the Lord is bringing wrath from His holy place upon the dwellers on the earth: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall not cover her slain.
Friday Ode 6 The Song Of Jonah (Jonah 2:1‑9)
Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly. And he said: I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, and He answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and You heard my voice. For You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the floods surrounded me; all Your billows and Your waves passed over me. Then I said, “I have been cast out of Your sight; yet I will look again toward Your holy temple.” The waters encompassed me, even to my soul; the deep closed around me; weeds were wrapped around my head. I went down to the moorings of the mountains; the earth with its bars closed behind me forever; yet You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord, my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer went up to You, into Your holy temple. Those who regard worthless idols forsake their own Mercy. But I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.