GREAT VESPERS
At Psalm 140
In Tone 8
- If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
Blessed Forerunner John, your head shone from the ground
with rays brighter than the sun.
It enlightens the faithful.
We have it has a divine treasure
and draw rich grace from it,
sanctifying our souls, our bodies and thoughts.
As we celebrate, we call you blessed.
- I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
Blessed Forerunner John, your head shone from the ground
with rays brighter than the sun.
It enlightens the faithful.
We have it has a divine treasure
and draw rich grace from it,
sanctifying our souls, our bodies and thoughts.
As we celebrate, we call you blessed.
- From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
Your holy head, blessed Forerunner, poured out abundant grace.
It was shown without his foreknowledge
to the priest who was wise in God.
He quickly went with faith and grace
and openly brought about its sanctified coming
with the emperor and the divinely wise people
who fervently maintain the orthodox faith.
- For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Your holy head, blessed Forerunner, poured out abundant grace.
It was shown without his foreknowledge
to the priest who was wise in God.
He quickly went with faith and grace
and openly brought about its sanctified coming
with the emperor and the divinely wise people
who fervently maintain the orthodox faith.
- Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
We celebrate the third revelation of your precious head.
When it was severed, glorious one,
the Trinity crowned it for your godly zeal.
The ranks of angels, the company of martyrs,
the apostles of God and all the prophets rejoice in its discovery.
Together with them, ever remember us, Forerunner of the Lord!
- Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
We celebrate the third revelation of your precious head.
When it was severed, glorious one,
the Trinity crowned it for your godly zeal.
The ranks of angels, the company of martyrs,
the apostles of God and all the prophets rejoice in its discovery.
Together with them, ever remember us, Forerunner of the Lord!
In Tone 6, Glory…
O Forerunner, your head, divinely preserved,
has risen from the bosom of the earth
as a treasury of graces of God.
Having received it, we bow down in reverence, O glorious prophet of Christ.
Through you, we have been given wondrous miracles
and have obtained the remission of our sins.
Now…
Who would not call you blessed, O Virgin most holy?
Who would not sing a hymn of praise
to the glory of your giving birth without pain or travail?
The Only-begotten Son Himself,
begotten of the Father before all ages,
was made flesh out of you in a manner
that cannot be explained, O Woman most pure!
And for our sake, He Who is God by nature
assumed the nature of a man.
He is not divided into two persons;
He is understood to have two natures
without commixion or confusion.
O noble and blessed Woman,
intercede with Him that He may mercy on our souls.
Readings
(1) Isaiah 40:1-11; (2) Malachi 3:1-18; (3) Wisdom 4:7-15.
Aposticha
In Tone 2
Come, O faithful: let us venerate the head which was cut off by a sword:
the precious head of the Forerunner,
commemorating its finding on this day.
Let us go out to meet it with hymns, wholeheartedly honouring it
as a fountain which pours forth the grace of healing upon us.
This is the head which was once cut off by the foolish Herod,
goaded by the grudging of Herodias.
O precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His faithful.
As gold is taken from the mines,
so has the head of the Forerunner come forth from the earth,
radiant in its reliquary.
He still speaks, clearly accusing Herod, the adulterous murderer;
and he illumines our souls with his light.
In our hymns today, we the faithful venerate the Forerunner
who intercedes for us before God.
The just will flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a Lebanon cedar.
The head of the Baptist lay long hidden underground
like a treasure in a chest.
Today it is revealed to the whole world, pouring forth abundant streams of healing,
stopping illnesses, and shedding light on our souls.
We rejoice in its divine consolations as we sing the praises of the Forerunner.
Glory…
O illustrious John, the venerable reliquary of divine thoughts,
your head which had clearly foreseen the mystery of the Ineffable One
came out from the caves of the earth as from a mother’s womb.
It perfumes the whole world with the myrrh of holiness,
to us you preach the way of repentance, interceding for our souls before the Saviour of all.
Now…
We now behold a new wonder,
greater than the wonders of old.
For who has ever known a mother to bear a child without the help of man?
Who has known a mother to hold in her arms the Source of all Creation?
It was God’s own will to be born in this manner;
and you, O most pure Virgin, carried Him as an infant in your arms.
Because of this, you can approach God with the boldness of a mother.
Therefore, we venerate you, and ask you to always beseech Him
to have mercy on us and save our souls.
Troparion
In Tone 4
O prophet and forerunner,* Christ has revealed to us your head as divine treasure concealed in the earth.* Assembled for this discovery* we praise Christ with hymns inspired of God.* Through your intercessions He saves us from corruption.
Glory… Now…
O Mother of God, the mystery hidden from all eternity* and unknown even to the angels,* was revealed through you to those on earth:* God took on our human nature* and united it to His divine nature in a perfect but unconfused union.* Then, He willingly accepted the cross for our sake* and thereby raised again the first created man,*and saved our souls from death.
DIVINE LITURGY
Troparion and Kontakion
Troparion, Tone 4: O prophet and forerunner,* Christ has revealed to us your head as divine treasure concealed in the earth.* Assembled for this discovery* we praise Christ with hymns inspired of God.* Through your intercessions He saves us from corruption.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 6: The Forerunner, a luminous and divine support in the world,* the lampstand of the sun,* has revealed his resplendent and divine head to the ends of the earth.* He hallows those who bow and cry out in faith:* “Save us all, O most wise Baptist of Christ.”
Prokeimenon, Tone 7
The just man shall be glad in the Lord and shall hope in Him.
verse: Hear, O God, my voice when I make my petition to You. (Psalm 63:11,2)
Epistle
2 Corinthians 4:6-15
Alleluia, Tone 5
verse: Light is risen for the just and joy for the righteous of heart.
verse: Truth sprang up from the ground, and righteousness bent down from heaven. (Psalm 96:11; 84:12)
Gospel
Matthew 11:2-15
Communion Hymn
The just man shall be in everlasting remembrance;* of evil hearsay he shall have no fear.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 111:6)