Song of Ascents, the first antiphon of Tone IV
After the first chanting of the Psalter, this sessional hymn, in Tone I: Spec. Mel.: “Thy tomb, O Savior…”—
The great commander of the immaterial angels, presenting himself in the city of Nazareth, proclaimeth to thee the King and Lord of the ages, O all-pure one, saying to thee: Rejoice, O blessed Mary, thou unapproachable and ineffable mystery, thou restoration of men!
At “God is the Lord…”, the troparion of the feast, thrice.
After the second chanting of the Psalter, this sessional hymn, in Tone III: Spec. Mel.: “Awed by the beauty of thy virginity…”—
Glory…, Now & ever…: The foregoing is repeated.
After the Polyeleos, this sessional hymn, in Tone IV: Spec. Mel.: “Joseph marvelled…”—
Today all creation rejoiceth as the archangel saith to thee “Rejoice!”, O blessed, honored and all-pure Mother of Christ God. Today the arrogance of the serpent is cast into darkness, for the bond of our forefather’s curse is annulled. Wherefore, we cry out to thee unceasingly: Rejoice, O joyous one!
Glory…, Now & ever…: Another sessional hymn, in the same tone & melody—
Glory…, Now & ever…: The foregoing is repeated.
Polyeleos, and this magnification—
We cry out to thee with the voice of the archangel, O pure one: Rejoice, O thou who art full of grace! The Lord is with thee!
Selected Psalm verses—
A O God, give Thy judgment to the king [71: 1]
B And Thy righteousness to the son of the king. [71: 1]
A That he may judge Thy people with righteousness. [71: 2]
B And Thy poor with judgment. [71: 2]
A He shall judge the beggars among the people, and shall save the sons of the poor. [71: 4]
B Proclaim from day to day the good tidings of the salvation of our God. [cf. 95: 2]
A The Lord shall give speech with great power to those who bring good tidings. [67: 12]
B The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David, and He will not annul it. [131: 11]
A Of the fruit of thy loins will I set upon thy throne. [131: 11]
B He shall come down like rain upon a fleece. [71: 6]
A And like rain-drops that fall upon the earth. [71: 6]
B And He bowed the heavens and came down, and thick darkness was under His feet. [17: 10]
A For the Lord hath elected Sion, He hath chosen her to be a habitation for Himself. [131: 13]
B The Most High hath hallowed His tabernacle. [45: 5]
A God is in the midst of her, she shall not be shaken. [45: 6]
B He shall spare the poor man and the pauper, and the souls of the poor shall He save. [71: 13]
A All the nations shall serve Him. [71: 11]
B All the day long shall they bless Him [71: 15]
A He shall be a support in the earth on the summits of the mountains. [71: 16]
B His name shall be blessed unto the ages. [71: 17]
A And in Him shall be blessed all the tribes of the earth. [71: 17]
B Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, Who alone doeth wonders. [71: 18]
A And blessed is the name of His glory forever, and unto the ages of ages. [71: 19]
B And all the earth shall be filled with His glory. So be it. So be it. [71: 19]
Glory…, Now & ever…
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. Glory to Thee, O God. Thrice
Gabriel from heaven crieth out “Rejoice!” to the honored one; for she conceiveth in her womb the preëternal God Who formed the ends of the earth by His word. Wherefore, Mary replied: “I know not man: how then shall I give birth to a Son? Who hath ever seen a seedless birthgiving?” And the angel, recounting, said to the Virgin Theotokos: “The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee!”
Gabriel was sent to the Virgin Mary and announced to her ineffable joy; for she would conceive without seed and not suffer corruption. “For thou shalt give birth to a Son, the preëternal God, and He will save His people from their sins. And He Who sent me beareth witness, telling me to cry to thee: Rejoice, O blessed one! O Virgin, thou shalt give birth, and shalt remain a virgin even after giving birth!”
Prokimenon, in Tone IV—
Proclaim from day to day the good tidings of the salvation of our God.
Stichos: O sing unto the Lord a new song, sing unto the Lord all the earth.
Let every breath praise the Lord.
Gospel according to Luke, §4
[Lk 1: 39-49, 56]
In those days, Mary arose and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah; and entered into the house of Zechariah, and saluted Elizabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit: and she spake out with a loud voice, and said: “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.” And Mary said: “My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. For He hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For He that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is His name.” And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.
After Psalm 50, this sticheron, idiomelon, in Tone II—
Today Gabriel announceth to her who is full of grace: “Rejoice, O Mother unwed, who knewest not wedlock! Be not amazed by my strange appearance, neither be thou afraid; for I am an archangel! The serpent once deceived Eve; but now I announce joy unto thee: thou wilt remain incorrupt and wilt give birth to the Lord, O all-holy one!”
Canon of the feast, the irmoi repeated twice, and the troparia repeated to make up 12. In odes in which an ode from the Triodion is appointed, canon of the feast, with 6 troparia, including the irmos, and of the Triodion, with 8 troparia.
Translated by Isaac Lambertsen. Edition menaion.en.lambertsen.