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Daily Readings
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Tuesday, 26th March 2019 --- 17 Baramhat 1735
Readings for Tuesday of fourth week of Great Lent
Matins
Genesis 28 : 10 - 22 Isaiah 25 : 1 - end Isaiah - 26 : 1 - 8 Job 18 : 1 - 21 Sirach 8 : 1 - end Sirach 10 : 1 - end
Genesis 28 : 10 - 22
Chapter 28
| 10 | Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran.
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| 11 | So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.
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| 12 | Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
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| 13 | And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: "I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.
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| 14 | Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
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| 15 | Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you."
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| 16 | Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it."
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| 17 | And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!"
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| 18 | Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it.
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| 19 | And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously.
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| 20 | Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on,
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| 21 | so that I come back to my father's house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God.
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| 22 | And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God's house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You."
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Isaiah 25 : 1 - end
Chapter 25
| 1 | O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
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| 2 | For You have made a city a ruin, A fortified city a ruin, A palace of foreigners to be a city no more; It will never be rebuilt.
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| 3 | Therefore the strong people will glorify You; The city of the terrible nations will fear You.
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| 4 | For You have been a strength to the poor, A strength to the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, A shade from the heat; For the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.
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| 5 | You will reduce the noise of aliens, As heat in a dry place; As heat in the shadow of a cloud, The song of the terrible ones will be diminished.
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| 6 | And in this mountain The LORD of hosts will make for all people A feast of choice pieces, A feast of wines on the lees, Of fat things full of marrow, Of well-refined wines on the lees.
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| 7 | And He will destroy on this mountain The surface of the covering cast over all people, And the veil that is spread over all nations.
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| 8 | He will swallow up death forever, And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces; The rebuke of His people He will take away from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken.
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| 9 | And it will be said in that day: "Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the LORD; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation."
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| 10 | For on this mountain the hand of the LORD will rest, And Moab shall be trampled down under Him, As straw is trampled down for the refuse heap.
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| 11 | And He will spread out His hands in their midst As a swimmer reaches out to swim, And He will bring down their pride Together with the trickery of their hands.
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| 12 | The fortress of the high fort of your walls He will bring down, lay low, And bring to the ground, down to the dust.
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Isaiah - 26 : 1 - 8
Job 18 : 1 - 21
Chapter 18
| 1 | Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
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| 2 | "How long till you put an end to words? Gain understanding, and afterward we will speak.
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| 3 | Why are we counted as beasts, And regarded as stupid in your sight?
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| 4 | You who tear yourself in anger, Shall the earth be forsaken for you? Or shall the rock be removed from its place?
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| 5 | "The light of the wicked indeed goes out, And the flame of his fire does not shine.
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| 6 | The light is dark in his tent, And his lamp beside him is put out.
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| 7 | The steps of his strength are shortened, And his own counsel casts him down.
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| 8 | For he is cast into a net by his own feet, And he walks into a snare.
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| 9 | The net takes him by the heel, And a snare lays hold of him.
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| 10 | A noose is hidden for him on the ground, And a trap for him in the road.
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| 11 | Terrors frighten him on every side, And drive him to his feet.
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| 12 | His strength is starved, And destruction is ready at his side.
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| 13 | It devours patches of his skin; The firstborn of death devours his limbs.
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| 14 | He is uprooted from the shelter of his tent, And they parade him before the king of terrors.
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| 15 | They dwell in his tent who are none of his; Brimstone is scattered on his dwelling.
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| 16 | His roots are dried out below, And his branch withers above.
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| 17 | The memory of him perishes from the earth, And he has no name among the renowned.
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| 18 | He is driven from light into darkness, And chased out of the world.
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| 19 | He has neither son nor posterity among his people, Nor any remaining in his dwellings.
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| 20 | Those in the west are astonished at his day, As those in the east are frightened.
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| 21 | Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, And this is the place of him who does not know God."
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Sirach 8 : 1 - end
Chapter 8
| 1 | Strive not with a powerful man, lest thou fall into his hands.
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| 2 | Contend not with a rich man, lest he bring an action against thee.
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| 3 | For gold and silver hath destroyed many, and hath reached even to the heart of kings, and perverted them.
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| 4 | Strive not with a man that is full of tongue, and heap not wood upon his fire.
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| 5 | Communicate not with an ignorant man, lest he speak ill of thy family.
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| 6 | Despise not a man that turneth away from sin, nor reproach him therewith: remember that we are all worthy of reproof.
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| 7 | Despise not a man in his old age; for we also shall become old.
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| 8 | Rejoice not at the death of thy enemy; knowing that we all die, and are not willing that others should rejoice at our death.
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| 9 | Despise not the discourse of them that are ancient and wise, but acquaint thyself with their proverbs.
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| 10 | For of them thou shalt learn wisdom, and instruction of understanding, and to serve great men without blame.
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| 11 | Let not the discourse of the ancients escape thee, for they have learned of their fathers:
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| 12 | For of them thou shalt learn understanding, and to give an answer in time of need.
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| 13 | Kindle not the coals of sinners by rebuking them, lest thou be burnt with the flame of the fire of their sins.
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| 14 | Stand not against the face of an injurious person, lest he sit as a spy to entrap thee in thy words.
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| 15 | Lend not to a man that is mightier than thyself: and if thou lendest, count it as lost.
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| 16 | Be not surety above thy power: and if thou be surety, think as if thou wert to pay it.
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| 17 | Judge not against a judge: for he judgeth according to that which is just.
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| 18 | Go not on the way with a bold man, lest he burden thee with his evils: for he goeth according to his own will, and thou shalt perish together with his folly.
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| 19 | Quarrel not with a passionate man, and go not into the desert with a bold man: for blood is as nothing in his sight, and where there is no help he will overthrow thee.
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| 20 | Advise not with fools, for they cannot love but such things as please them.
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| 21 | Before a stranger do no matter of counsel: for thou knowest not what he will bring forth.
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| 22 | Open not thy heart to every man: lest he repay thee with an evil turn, and speak reproachfully to thee.
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Sirach 10 : 1 - end
Chapter 10
| 1 | There is not a more wicked thing than to love money: for such a one setteth even his own soul to sale: because while he liveth he hath cast away his bowels.
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| 2 | All power is of short life. A long sickness is troublesome to the physician.
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| 3 | The physician cutteth off it short sickness: so also a king is to day, and to morrow he shall die.
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| 4 | For when a man shall die, he shall inherit serpents, end beasts, and worms.
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| 5 | The beginning of the pride of man, is to fall off from God:
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| 6 | Because his heart is departed from him that made him: for pride is the beginning of all sin: be that holdeth it, shall be filled with maledictions, and it shall ruin him in the end.
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| 7 | Therefore hath the Lord disgraced the assemblies of the wicked, and hath utterly destroyed them.
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| 8 | God hath overturned the thrones of proud princes, and hath set up the meek in their stead.
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| 9 | God hath made the roots of proud nations to wither, and hath planted the humble of these nations.
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| 10 | The Lord hath overthrown the lands of the Gentiles, and hath destroyed them even to the foundation.
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| 11 | He hath made some of them to wither away, and hath destroyed them, and hath made the memory of them to cease from the earth.
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| 12 | God hath abolished the memory of the proud, and hath preserved the memory of them that are humble in mind.
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| 13 | Pride was not made for men: nor wrath for the race of women.
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| 14 | That seed of men shall be honoured, which feareth God: but that seed shall be dishonoured, which transgresseth the commandments of the Lord.
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| 15 | In the midst of brethren their chief is honourable: so shall they that fear the Lord, be in his eyes.
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| 16 | The fear of God is the glory of the rich, and of the honourable, and of the poor:
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| 17 | Despise not a just man that is poor, and do not magnify a sinful man that is rich.
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| 18 | The great man, and the judge, and the mighty is in honour: and there is none greater than he that feareth God.
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| 19 | They that are free shall serve a servant that is wise: and a man that is prudent and well instructed will not murmur when he is reproved; and he that is ignorant, shall not be honoured.
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| 20 | Extol not thyself in doing thy work, and linger not in the time of distress:
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| 21 | Better is he that laboureth, and aboundeth in all things, than he that boasteth himself and wanteth bread.
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| 22 | My son, keep thy soul in meekness, and give it honour according to its desert.
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| 23 | Who will justify him that sinneth against his own soul? and who will honour him that dishonoureth his own soul?
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| 24 | The poor man is glorified by his discipline and fear: and there is a man that is honoured for his wealth.
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| 25 | But he that is glorified in poverty, how much more in wealth? and he that is glorified in wealth, let him fear poverty.
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Matins
Matins Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 17 : 1 - 1
Chapter 17
| 1 | Hear a just cause, O LORD, Attend to my cry; Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.
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Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Matins Gospel
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint Matthew the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Matthew 21 : 28 - 32
Chapter 21
| 28 | "But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, "Son, go, work today in my vineyard.'
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| 29 | He answered and said, "I will not,' but afterward he regretted it and went.
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| 30 | Then he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, "I go, sir,' but he did not go.
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| 31 | Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said to Him, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you.
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| 32 | For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward relent and believe him.
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And Glory be to God forever.
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Liturgy Gospel
Paulines Epistle
Paul, the servant of our Lord Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, appointed to the Gospel of God.
A reading from the Epistle of our teacher Paul to the Ephesians .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
Ephesians 4 : 1 - 16
Chapter 4
| 1 | I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
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| 2 | with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
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| 3 | endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
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| 4 | There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;
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| 5 | one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
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| 6 | one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
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| 7 | But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.
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| 8 | Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men."
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| 9 | (Now this, "He ascended"--what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth?
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| 10 | He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
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| 11 | And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
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| 12 | for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
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| 13 | till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
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| 14 | that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
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| 15 | but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ--
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| 16 | from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
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The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
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Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle 2 of St. Peter .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
2 Peter 2 : 2 - 8
Chapter 2
| 2 | And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.
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| 3 | By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.
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| 4 | For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
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| 5 | and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;
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| 6 | and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;
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| 7 | and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked
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| 8 | (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)--
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Do not love the world or the things in the world.
The world passes away, and its desires; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Amen.
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Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of our fathers the apostles, may their blessings be with us.
Acts 27 : 1 - 3
Chapter 27
| 1 | And when it was decided that we should sail to Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to one named Julius, a centurion of the Augustan Regiment.
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| 2 | So, entering a ship of Adramyttium, we put to sea, meaning to sail along the coasts of Asia. Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, was with us.
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| 3 | And the next day we landed at Sidon. And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him liberty to go to his friends and receive care.
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The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
Amen.
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Synaxarium
Day 17 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Baramhat, may God make it always received, year after year, with reassurance and tranquility, while our sins after forgiven by the tender mercies of our God my fathers and brothers.
Amen.
The Seventeenth Day of the Blessed Month of Baramhat
Departure of Lazarus, the beloved of
the Lord
On this day the righteous Lazarus, the beloved
of the Lord Christ, departed. He was the brother of Martha and Mary who
anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair. When
Lazarus fell sick the sisters sent to the Lord Christ saying: "Lord, behold,
he whom You love is sick." When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness
is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be
glorified through it." Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place
where He was" to magnify the miracle. Then after this He said to the disciples,
"Let us go to Judea again." The disciples told Him, "Rabbi, lately the
Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?" Jesus answered,
"Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he
does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. "But if one
walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." These
things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps,
but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he
sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought
that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them
plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not
there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him."
When the Lord came to Bethany which is nearby Jerusalem
He stood before the tomb and said: "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister
of him who was dead, said to Him, "Lord, by this time there is a stench,
for he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you
that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" Then they took
away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted
up His eyes and prayed then he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come
forth!" And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes,
and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Loose him,
and let him go."
(John 11:1-45) That was to manifest the reality of his
death, so no one would think that this was deception with previous arrangement,
for that the miracle was magnified and many believed.
May The prayers of this righteous be with us. Amen.
Commemoration of the Saints George the
Ascetic, Belasius the Martyr, and Anba Joseph the Bishop
On this day also the church
celebrates the commemoration of the Saints George the ascetic, Belasius
the martyr, and Anba Joseph the bishop.
May their prayers be with us. Amen.
Departure of St.Basilius, Bishop of Jerusalem
On this day also of the
year 1615 A.M. (March 26th., 1899 A.D.) the great father Anba Basilius,
Metropolitan of Jerusalem, departed. This father was born in the village
of El-Dabah, Farshout county, the province of Quena, for righteous parents.
They nursed him with the milk of righteousness since his young age, as
they taught him reading and writing, so he grew on loving perfection and
moral excellence. When he was twenty-five years old he went to the monastery
of St. Antonios and put on the monastic garb in the year 1559 A.M. He persevered
in worshipping and ascetism and because he was adorned with righteousness
and piety they ordained him priest in the year 1565 A.M. and archpriest
(Hegumen) in the year 1568 A.M., then they appointed him an Abott for the
monastery. He managed the monastery well with gentleness, wisdom and meekness
that made the blessed Anba Kyrellos IV to ordain him Metropolitan for Jerusalem
and the parishes that were attached to him: El-Kaliobia, El-Sharkia, El-Dakahlia,
El-Gharbia, Suez, Domiat, and Port-Said. He had shown prudence in managing
the affairs of these parishes that made him the center of admiration and
pride to the Copts. All his efforts were dedicated for the building of
churches all over his parish, buying and renovating properties in Jaffa
and Jerusalem. He was loved by all the people of Syria and Palestine, regardless
of their religion or political persuasion, especially the rulers of Jerusalem,
for his wise policy and straight morals. During his days a dispute aroused
from the Ethiopians where they claimed their ownership for the monastery
of El-Sultan in Jerusalem. Because of this father and his vigilance they
could not establish an ownership for the monastery. He attended the enthronement
of Pope Demetrius II, the hundred eleventh, and Pope Kyrellos V, the hundred
twelfth. He spent his days in continuous effort for what was good for his
people and departed in peace.
May his prayers be with us. Amen.
Martyrdom of St.Sedhom Bishay in Domiat
On this day also the church
commemorates the martyrdom of Sedhom Bishay in Domiat on the 17th. of Baramhat
year 1565 A.D. (March 25th., 1844 A.D.). He endured the torture for the
Name of the Lord Christ and his martyrdom made the rising of the Cross
during the Christian funeral processions openly, for it was forbidden before.
This martyr was a clerical employee in the government of the port of Domiat
during the days of Mohammed Ali Basha the Governor of Egypt. A revolt of
mobs in the port arose, they seized Sidhom Bishay and accused him falsely
that he cursed Islam and witnessed against him before the religious judge
a low uncivilized person and a donkey driver. The judge decided either
he would forsake his faith or be killed, he whipped him and then sent him
to the Governor of the city. After the Governor had examined his case he
issued the same judgement against him as the judge did. Sidhom was steadfast
in his Christian faith, not caring to be killed. They whipped, dragged
him on his face down the stairs in the Governor palace, then they put him
on a buffalo facing the tail and went around with him in the streets of
the city insulting and degrading him. The Christians in the city became
afraid and locked themselves in their houses.
The mob continued to insult
him and tortured him in different ways until he was about to deliver his
soul; so they brought him to the door of his house and left him there.
His family went out and brought him inside and five days later he departed
to heaven. His departure was a great martyrdom, and the Christians counted
him among the holy martyrs. They gathered regardless of their denomination
and joined in his funeral in a celebration that there was nothing like
it before. The Christians carried their arms and the priest put on their
vestments headed by the Archpriest Yousef Michael who was the head of the
Coptic congregation in Domiat and accompanied by the priests of the other
denominations. They marched in his fu.eral in the streets of the city and
in front of him the deacons carrying the banners of the Cross, and they
arrived to the church where they prayed the funeral rites. The people went
on objecting this reprehensible and painful incident and talking about
the patience and endurance of the different kinds of torture in silence
and the steadfastness of Sidhom the martyr. The prominent people of the
Christian community in Domiat deliberated as how to avoid these incidents
in the future. They decided to ask the consuls of the foreign countries
to mediate with the ruler of the country and the Pope the Patriarch of
the Copts and sent to them detailed reports. Mr Michail Sorour the official
representative of seven countries in Domiat was in charge of this mediation.
The ruler of Egypt was concerned about this incident and sent two official
representatives to examine the case. So they reopened the inquiry and they
realized the injustice and the ill-treatment that befell the great martyr
and convicted the judge and the governor for their wrong doing, stripped
them from their honor then exiled them. They asked, as a good will and
to comfort the people, to allow the raising of the Cross publicly before
the Christian funerals, and the ruler allowed that in Domiat. This was
allowed later on all over the country during the Papacy of Pope Kyrellos
IV.
May The blessings of this great martyr be with us and glory be to
God forever. Amen.
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Divine Psalm
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint John the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet, and the Good King.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 17 : 6
Chapter 17
| 6 | I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
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Hallelujah.
Divine Gospel
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Luke 9 : 57 - 62
Chapter 9
| 57 | Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."
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| 58 | And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."
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| 59 | Then He said to another, "Follow Me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."
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| 60 | Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."
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| 61 | And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."
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| 62 | But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
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And Glory be to God forever.
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Acknowledgement
Opening page