GREAT VESPERS

At Psalm 140

In Tone 4

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

Come, let us go up with Jesus* as He ascends the holy mountain;* there we shall hear the voice of the living God:* the Father Who is without beginning* as He gives witness by a cloud through the Divine Spirit* to the consubstantiality of the coeternal Sonship;* Being thus enlightened in mind,* we shall see light in the light.

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

Come, let us go up with Jesus* as He ascends the holy mountain;* there we shall hear the voice of the living God:* the Father Who is without beginning* as He gives witness by a cloud through the Divine Spirit* to the consubstantiality of the coeternal Sonship;* Being thus enlightened in mind,* we shall see light in the light.

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

Come, let us exult in anticipation,* purifying ourselves,* and faithfully prepare for the divine ascent* to the lofty dwelling place of God,* that we may witness His majesty* and receive His glory,* which the chosen from among the Apostles* were made worthy to behold,* mystically on Mount Tabor.

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

Come, let us exult in anticipation,* purifying ourselves,* and faithfully prepare for the divine ascent* to the lofty dwelling place of God,* that we may witness His majesty* and receive His glory,* which the chosen from among the Apostles* were made worthy to behold,* mystically on Mount Tabor.

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

Come, having today transformed ourselves,* with a more exalted transformation,* let us be well prepared for tomorrow!*  That we may ascend the holy mountain of God;* and, that we may behold the unchanging radiant glory of Christ* which is brighter than the sun.* Having been illumined by the light of the Trinity,* we shall glorify the condescension of God in it.

In Tone 2

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

The Father, with His Divine Son, has made a dwelling place* in their beloved people,* who kept the word of His truth* and endured in faithfulness.* The children of God in much-suffering Ukraine* feared neither torment, persecution nor cruel death.* And so upon them, as if upon living foundation stones,* the Sobor of the Resurrection rises up.

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

You, O Perfecter,* have transformed the souls of Your faithful friends* into a House of Wisdom* and a temple of Your invisible presence.* The temple of Your love is more formidable than walls of stone,* established as it is within the human heart, a living Holy of Holies.* From it, there blossomed forth the visible beauty* of the newly raised Sobor of the Resurrection.

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

How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Sabaoth!* From of old the Ukrainian soul would huddle to* Your majestic and ancient temples;* but, in the midst of evil times, full of the darkness of hostile Godlessness* other temples faithfully shone forth:* the village home, the city room,* in every place where living torches of Your truth shone forth,* raising thereby the Sobor of the Resurrection.

In Tone 5

Glory…

Come from the west, and the north, and the sea, and the east,* from all over Ukraine – O faithful friends of the Lord,* and let us behold the Church reborn.* Let the cathedral of our souls shine forth, as divinely radiant torches,* within that cathedral which is built above Slavutych.*  And so, raised up in spirit by the Holy Spirit,* let us glorify Christ, our Pascha, unto the ages!

Now…

Come, let us ascend the mountain of the Lord* and go into the house of our God.* Let us gaze upon the glory of His Transfiguration,* the glory of the only-begotten Son of God the Father.* From His light, let us receive light;* and raised up in spirit by the Holy Spirit,* let us sing the praises of the consubstantial Trinity unto the ages.

Readings: 1 Kings 8:22-23, 27-30; Wisdom 7:21-8:4; Proverbs 9:1-11

Aposticha

In Tone 2

Illumined by the brightness of the virtues,* let us ascend the holy mountain* so that we may gaze upon the divine Transfiguration of the Lord.

Mercy and truth have met; righteousness and peace have embraced.

Shining forth like the sun upon Mount Tabor,* before undergoing [the Passion of] the Cross,* Christ bestows a sign—worthy of His divine nature* —upon the initiates of the mysteries.

Blessed are the people who know the festal shout.

Wishing to transform the nature of Adam,* Christ ascends Mount Tabor today* so that He may reveal His divine nature* to the initiates of the mysteries.

In Tone 2

Glory…

Let us enter through the radiant gates,* which the Holy One, the True One, opens before us* —and who would be able to shut them?* For, although the Ukrainian people for a very long time did not possess the power of self-government,* yet they kept the words of Christ,* and did not deny His Name to their very end.* And those who conquer in Spirit,* the Lord will transform into pillars of His temple;* and there will be written upon them the Name of their God,* and the Name of the New Jerusalem,* the future and foreshadowed [city] already made manifest* in the Kyivan Cathedral of the Resurrection* for the salvation of our souls.

Now…

O You, Who were transfigured in glory on Mount Tabor,* and showed Your disciples the glory of Your divine nature,* pour out also upon us the light of Your knowledge, O Christ our God !* And, direct us to the way of Your divine commandments* since You, alone, are Good and the Lover of Mankind.

Troparia

In Tone 4

As the priceless beauty residing within the divine image of the tabernacle,* thus outwardly you manifested the holy glory of your temple O Lord.* Establish it for the ages of ages, and accept, through the prayers of the Theotokos, our supplications,* which we unceasingly offer to You, O Life and Resurrection of all.

Glory…Now…

Faithful, let us celebrate in advance the joy of Christ’s Transfiguration!* Let us rejoice and cry out in the prefeast:* The day of heavenly joy is approaching,* for the Lord is ascending Mount Tabor* where He shines with the light of His Divinity!

DIVINE LITURGY

Troparia and Kontakia

Troparion, Tone 4: As the priceless beauty residing within the divine image of the tabernacle,* thus outwardly you manifested the holy glory of your temple O Lord.* Establish it for the ages of ages, and accept, through the prayers of the Theotokos, our supplications,* which we unceasingly offer to You, O Life and Resurrection of all.

Troparion, Tone 4: Faithful, let us celebrate in advance the joy of Christ’s Transfiguration!* Let us rejoice and cry out in the prefeast:* The day of heavenly joy is approaching,* for the Lord is ascending Mount Tabor* where He shines with the light of His Divinity!

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

Kontakion, Tone 4: The Synaxis of the faithful in the Sobor of the Resurrection,* shines as a multitude of stars in heavens,* and as we offer our prayers we exclaim:* “This is the house the Lord has made.”

Now and for ever and ever. Amen.

Kontakion, Tone 4: Today mankind prepares to reflect the radiance of divine splendour* wrought in the Transfiguration of Christ!* Crying joyfully: Christ is transfigured to save us all!

Prokeimenon, Tone 4
Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.
verse: The Lord reigns! He is clothed in majesty! (Psalm 92:6, 1)

Epistle: Hebrews 3:1-14

Alleluia, Tone 2
verse: His foundations are in the holy mountains.
verse: Glorious things were said concerning you, O city of God. (Psalm 86:1, 3)

Gospel: Matthew 16:13-18

Communion Hymn
O Lord, I love the beauty of Your house,* and the place where Your glory dwells.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia (Psalm 25:8).