Today hath John the Forerunner, the fruit of prayer, sprung forth in a barren womb. Make merry, O desert, and join chorus with mankind; for, lo! the preacher of repentance cometh forth to be incarnate in his mother’s womb. Come, O ye who love the feasts of the Church, and, rejoicing in his glorious conception, let us form a choir, crying out: O thou who art the greatest born of woman, cease not to make supplication in behalf of those who celebrate thy divine conception, that we may find cleansing of our sins and great mercy.
Glory..., the composition of Byzantius, in Tone VI—
At “Lord, I have cried...,” six stichera, in Tone IV: Spec. Mel: “Called from on high...”—
Troparion, in Tone IV—
Now and ever..., the Dogmaticon, in the same tone—
While the godly Zechariah was officiating as priest within the most divine temple, offering up the petitions of the people to the most compassionate Benefactor, he beheld a most divine angel, who cried out to him: “Thy supplication and entreaty have been heard! Be of good cheer, O elder, and disbelieve not; for thou shalt have a child, the Forerunner of God, the greatest of all born of women, who, with the power of Elijah, will go before Christ!” Twice
Glory..., idiomelon, in Tone VI—
“Strange dost thou appear to me in aspect and discourse; strange also in thy words and proclamations,” Zechariah objected. “For I have come to ask for the salvation of the people, not for the reception of a child, as thou dost state. I find thee contrary to my requests and am minded to place no credence in thee. For how can such a thing as that of which thou speakest come to pass? For Elizabeth is barren, and I, as thou knowest, am an elderly man.” Twice
Now and ever..., Theotokion—
“Why believest thou not my words, O Zechariah? Why sayest thou that I offer thee false tidings? I am the archangel of God; and those things which I am commanded, these do I relate to thee, standing here before thee. But inasmuch as thou hast not believed, and hast not faith, thou shalt be deaf and mute until thou shalt see the divine fulfillment of my words. And when Elizabeth will give birth for thee unto the voice of the Word, the great Forerunner, who will illumine the nation, thou shalt bless the God of Israel!” Twice
Who doth not call thee blessed, O all-holy Virgin? Who will not hymn thine all-pure birthgiving? For the only-begotten Son Who shone forth timelessly from the Father, came forth, ineffably incarnate, from thee, the pure one; and being God by nature, He becameth man for our sake, not divided into two Persons, but known in two natures without confusion. Him do thou beseech, O pure and most blessed one, that our souls find mercy!
At the Aposticha, these stichera, in Tone VI: Spec. Mel: “Having set aside all...”—
When the sacred prophet reverently entered the Holy of Holies, a holy angel, standing before the saint, as it is written, announced, saying: “Thy supplication hath been heard, and the barrenness of Elizabeth is now loosed; and she will bear thee a son, O elder: John the Forerunner, the beacon of the Sun, the greatest of the prophets, the voice of the Word Who will shine forth from the divine Virgin Maiden!”
Stichos: And thou, O child, shalt be called the prophet of the Most High.
“Tell me more plainly why I should believe this,” the most blessed elder said again to the angel; “As thou seest, I am full of days, and Elizabeth is barren. How, then, dost thou declare unto me words which are beyond nature? I am amazed, and now think that thou in no wise speakest the truth. Depart from me, O man! For I am asking deliverance for the people, and not to receive a child, a thing hard to accept!”
Stichos: That we might serve Him in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
“I am the archangel of the Almighty! Gabriel is my name,” the incorporeal one said to the elder. “And now be thou mute, and learn silence, for not believing what I have said; but when thy spouse will give birth for thee unto the clarion of the Word, thou shalt cry out most plainly, the Spirit enlightening thy tongue: `O child, thou shalt be called the prophet of the Most High, who by grace shalt make ready His path, as is His good pleasure!’”
Thou didst come forth from a barren womb as an angel, O Baptist; from thine earliest childhood thou didst make thine abode in the wilderness, and hast shown thyself to be the seal of all the prophets; for Him Whom they foresaw many times and proclaimed in indistinct images, wast thou counted worthy to baptize in the Jordan; and thou didst hear the voice of the Father from heaven, bearing witness to His Sonship; and thou didst see the Spirit in the form of a dove, drawing down the voice upon the One Who was being baptized. O thou who art the greatest of all the prophets: cease not to pray in behalf of us who faithfully celebrate thy memory.
No one who hath recourse to thee, O all-pure Virgin Theotokos, departeth from thee ashamed; for he asketh grace and receiveth a gift for his profitable petition.
Make merry, O barren woman, who before wast unable to bear a child! For, lo! thou hast manifestly conceived the lamp of the Sun, who will enlighten all the world, which suffereth from blindness. Dance thou, O Zechariah, crying out with boldness: He who will be born is the prophet of the Most High!
Translated by Isaac Lambertsen. Edition menaion.en.lambertsen.