AT GREAT VESPERS

After the Introductory Psalm, we chant “Blessed is the man…”, the first antiphon.

A Reading from Exodus

On “Lord, I have cried…”, we chant 8 stichera, the composition of Patriarch Germanus: idiomela, in Tone I—

A Reading from the Prophecy of Isaiah

Tell us, O Symeon: Whom bearest thou into the temple in thine arms, rejoicing? To Whom dost thou cry aloud: “Now have I been freed, for I have beheld my Savior!”? “He is the One Who is born of the Virgin! He is God the Word, Who from God became incarnate for our sake and saveth man! Him let us worship!” Thrice

A Reading from the Prophecy of Isaiah

Receive, O Symeon, Him Whom Moses beheld in the gloom on Sinai giving the law, and Who hath become a babe, submitting to the law. He is the One Who speaketh through the law; He is the One spoken of by the prophets, Who for our sake hath become incarnate and saveth man. Him let us worship! Thrice

Let us come and greet Christ with divine hymns, and let us receive Him Whom Symeon perceived as our salvation. He is the One Whom David proclaimed beforehand; He is the One spoken of in the prophets, Who for our sake hath become incarnate and speaketh through the law. Him let us worship. Twice

Glory…, Now & ever…, the composition of John the Monk, in Tone VI—

Let the gates of heaven be opened today; for the unoriginate Word of the Father, receiving a beginning under time, without abandoning His divinity, is of His own will borne by His Virgin Mother into the temple of the law as a babe forty days old. And Symeon taketh Him in his arms, crying: “Let Thy servant depart, O Master, for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation! O Lord Who hast come into the world to save the human race, glory be to Thee!”

Entrance. Prokimenon of the day. 3 Readings:

And the Lord spake to Moses in that day that He brought out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, saying: “Sanctify to Me every firstborn, first-produced, opening every womb among the children of Israel.” And Moses went, and gathered all the people together, and said: “Remember this day in which ye came forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, for with a strong hand the Lord brought you forth from thence. And preserve ye His law. And it shall come to pass when the Lord thy God shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, as He promised to thy fathers, and thou shalt set apart every firstborn opening the womb, the males to the Lord. And if thy son should ask thee hereafter, saying: ‘What is this?’ then thou shalt say to him: ‘With a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. And when Pharaoh hardened his heart so as not to send us away, he slew every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore do I sacrifice to the Lord every offspring that openeth the womb, the males to the Lord, and ever firstborn of my sons I will redeem. And it shall be for a sign unto thy hand, and immovable before thine eyes.’ For thus said the Lord God Almighty: ‘The firstborn of thy sons thou shalt give to Me. And whosoever shall have borne a male child, on the eighth day she shall circumcise the flesh of his foreskin. And for thirty-three days she shall not enter the sanctuary, unto the priest, until the days of her purification be fulfilled. And thereafter she shall bring a lamb of a year old without blemish for a whole-burnt offering, and a young pigeon or turtle-dove to the door of the tabernacle of witness, to the priest. And if she cannot afford a lamb, then shall she take two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, and the priest shall pray for him. For these are given to Me for a present out of the midst of the children of Israel: I have taken them, and have sanctified them to Myself instead of the firstborn of the Egyptians, in the day in which I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt, whether of man or beast,’” said God Most High, the Holy One of Israel.

And it came to pass in the year in which King Uzziah died, that I saw the Lord sitting on a high and exalted throne, and the house was full of His glory. And seraphim stood round about Him: each one had six wings: and with two they covered their face, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one cried to the other, and they said: “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts! The whole earth is full of His glory!” And the lintel shook at the voice they uttered, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! for I am pricked to the heart; for being a man, and having unclean lips, I dwell in the midst of a people having unclean lips; and I have seen with mine eyes the King, the Lord of hosts!” And there was sent to me one of the seraphim, and he had in his hand an ember, which he had taken off the altar with the tongs: and he touched my mouth, and said: “Behold, this hath touched thy lips, and will take away thine iniquities, and will purge off thy sins.” And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom should I send, and who will go to this people?” And I said: “Behold, I am here, send me!” And He said: “Go, and say to this people: ‘Ye shall hear indeed, but ye shall not understand; and ye shall see indeed, but ye shall not perceive.’ For the heart of this people hath become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.” And I said: “How long, O Lord?” And He said: “Until the cities be deserted by reason of their not being inhabited, and the houses by reason of there being no men, and the land shall be left desolate. And after this God shall remove the men far off, and they that are left upon the land shall be multiplied.”

Behold, the Lord sitteth on a light cloud, and shall come to Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at His presence, and their heart shall faint within them. And their spirit shall be troubled within them; and I will frustrate their counsel. And I will deliver Egypt into the hands of men, of cruel lords: for the Lord and Master, the Holy One of Sabaoth, saith these things. And the Egyptians shall drink water that is by the sea, but the river shall fail, and be dried up. These things saith the Lord: “Where are now thy wise men? And let them declare to thee, and say: ‘What hath the Lord of hosts purposed upon Egypt?’” But in that day the Egyptians shall be in fear and trembling, because of the hand of the Lord of Sabaoth, which He shall bring upon them. In that day there shall be an altar to the Lord in the land of the Egyptians, and a pillar to the Lord by its border. And it shall be for a sign to the Lord forever in the land of Egypt: for they shall presently cry to the Lord, and the Lord shall send them a Man who shall save them. The Lord shall be known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day; and they shall offer sacrifices, and shall vow vows to the Lord.

At Litia, these stichera: in Tone I—

The composition of Anatolius: The Ancient of days, Who of old gave the law to Moses on Sinai, is seen today as a babe, and as the Creator of the law, under the law and fulfilling the law, He is borne into the temple and given to the elder. And the righteous Symeon, receiving Him, and seeing the utter fulfillment of the promises, cried out with joy: “Mine eyes have seen the mystery hidden from before time, which hath been revealed in these latter days: the Light illumining the darkness of the unbelieving nations, giving glory to the newly-chosen Israel! Wherefore, release Thy servant from the bonds of this flesh to the wondrous life which ageth not and is without end, granting the world great mercy!”

The composition of John the Monk: Today, He Who gave the law to Moses on Sinai submitteth to the commands of the law, having become like us for our sake, in that He is full of loving-kindness. Now our pure God, as a holy Infant, having opened the womb of the pure one, is offered to Himself, as God, freeing our souls from the curse of the law and enlightening them.

In Tone II: The composition of Andrew Pyrrhus: Him to Whom the ministers on high pray with trembling, now, here below, Symeon taketh into his material arms. He announced that God hath united Himself to men, and, seeing God as a heavenly man, cried out with joy at being separated from those on earth: “O Lord Who revealest the never-waning light to those in darkness, glory be to Thee!”

The composition of Germanus: Today, Symeon receiveth in his arms the Lord of glory, Whom Moses beheld before in the darkness, and Who gave him the tablets on Mount Sinai. He is the Creator of the law, Who speaketh in the prophets. He it is Who filleth all with awe, Whom David proclaimeth, and hath great and rich mercy.

The sacred Virgin brought the Sacred One to the high priest in the temple, and Symeon, stretching forth his hands, received Him, rejoicing, and cried out: “Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, O Lord, according to Thy word!”

Today the Creator of heaven and earth is borne by the holy elder Symeon in his arms; and through the Holy Spirit he said: “Now have I been set free, for I have beheld my Savior!”

The composition of Anatolius: Today the elder Symeon entereth the temple, rejoicing in spirit, to receive in his arms the Fulfiller of the law, Who gave the law unto Moses. For Moses was vouchsafed to behold God in darkness and an indistinct voice, and with his face covered denounced the faithless hearts of the Jews; but Symeon bore the preëternal Word of the Father incarnate, and revealed to the nations the Light, the Cross and the Resurrection. And Anna was shown to be a prophetess, proclaiming the Savior and Deliverer of Israel. To Christ our God let us cry out: For the sake of the Theotokos, have mercy on us!

Glory…, the composition of Andrew of Crete, in Tone V—

Examine ye the Scriptures, as Christ our God said in the Gospels, for therein do we find Him born, wrapped in swaddling bands, laid in a manger, fed with milk, undergoing circumcision, and carried by Symeon, not in a semblance or guise, but appearing in truth to the world. To Him do we cry out: O preëternal God, glory be to Thee!

Now & ever…, the composition of Germanus, in the same tone—

The Ancient of days, having become a babe, is borne into the temple by the Virgin Mother, fulfilling the promise of His own law; and Symeon, receiving Him, said: “Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word; for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, O Holy One!”

At the aposticha, these stichera, the composition of Cosmas the Monk, in Tone VII—

Adorn thy bridal-chamber, O Sion, and receive Christ the King. And greet Mary, the portal of heaven; for she hath been shown to be the throne of the cherubim, she beareth the King of glory. The Virgin is the cloud of the Light, bearing in her arms the Son Who existed before the day-star. And Symeon, taking Him in his arms, doth announce to the people that He is the Master of life and death, the Savior of the world.

Stichos: Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, O Master, according to Thy word.

Bearing into the temple Him Who shone forth from the Father before time began, and Who in latter times came forth from her virginal womb, the Mother who knew not wedlock brought to the elderly priest and righteous one Him Who, though He gave the law on Mount Sinai, submitteth to the prescription of the law; for it had been promised that he would see Christ the Lord. And when Symeon received Him in his arms, he rejoiced, crying out: “This Child is God, the Deliverer of our souls, Who with the Father is equally eternal!”

Stichos: A Light to enlighten the gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.

Mary, the Theotokos who knew not wedlock, bearing in her arms Him Who is carried on the chariot of the cherubim and is hymned in songs by the seraphim, Who became incarnate of her, the Bestower of the law Who was fulfilling the rite of the law, gave Him into the hands of the elderly priest; and he, bearing our Life, asked to be released from life, saying: “O Master, now let me announce unto Adam that I have seen the immutable Child, the preëternal God and Savior of the world!”

Glory…, Now & ever…, the composition of Andrew of Crete, in Tone VIII—

He Who is borne upon the cherubim and is hymned by the seraphim, borne into the temple of God today in accordance with the law, sitteth in the arms of the elder as on a throne, and as God receiveth gifts from Joseph: a pair of turtle-doves—the undefiled Church and the people newly-chosen from among the gentiles; and two young pigeons—the beginning of the Old and the New. And Symeon, finally receiving the fulfillment of the promise made to him and blessing the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos, foretold in imagery the sufferings she would endure and asked from God deliverance, crying out: “Now let me depart, O Master, as Thou didst tell me before; for I have seen Thee, the preëternal Light, the Savior and Lord of the Christian people!”

Then, “Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart…”, and the Trisagion through Our Father…. And after the blessing of the loaves, the troparion of the feast, in Tone I—

Rejoice, O Virgin Theotokos, full of grace, for from thee hath shone forth Christ our God, the Sun of righteousness, Who doth illumine those in darkness. Be glad, thou also, O righteous elder who receivest in thine arms the Deliverer of our souls, Who granteth us resurrection. Thrice

Then, the reading appointed for the day.

But if a vigil is not served, after “Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart…”, the troparion of the feast, once; and the dismissal. At compline, after “It is truly meet…”, we say the kontakion of the feast. We chant nocturns as usual, with its kathisma. After the first Trisagion, instead of “Behold! the Bridegroom…”, we say the troparion of the feast; and after the second Trisagion, instead of “Remember, O Lord, in that Thou art good,…”, we say the kontakion of the feast, followed by “Lord, have mercy!” (twelve times), and the dismissal. We do not say the prayers “Remember, O Lord, those who have reposed in hope…”