Readings for Tue, April 23rd

Matins

Prophecies

Proverbs 10:17-33

He who keeps instruction is in the way of life,
        But he who refuses correction goes astray.
        Whoever hides hatred has lying lips,
        And whoever spreads slander is a fool.
        In the multitude of words sin is not lacking,
        But he who restrains his lips is wise.
        The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;
        The heart of the wicked is worth little.
        The lips of the righteous feed many,
        But fools die for lack of wisdom.
        The blessing of the LORD makes one rich,
        And He adds no sorrow with it.
        To do evil is like sport to a fool,
        But a man of understanding has wisdom.
        The fear of the wicked will come upon him,
        And the desire of the righteous will be granted.
        When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more,
        But the righteous has an everlasting foundation.
        As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
        So is the lazy man to those who send him.
        The fear of the LORD prolongs days,
        But the years of the wicked will be shortened.
        The hope of the righteous will be gladness,
        But the expectation of the wicked will perish.
        The way of the LORD is strength for the upright,
        But destruction will come to the workers of iniquity.
        The righteous will never be removed,
        But the wicked will not inhabit the earth.
        The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,
        But the perverse tongue will be cut out.
        The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,
        But the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.

Isaiah 49:6-10

Indeed He says,
        "It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant
        To raise up the tribes of Jacob,
        And to restore the preserved ones of Israel;
        I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles,
        That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth."'
        Thus says the LORD,
        The Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One,
        To Him whom man despises,
        To Him whom the nation abhors,
        To the Servant of rulers:
        "Kings shall see and arise,
        Princes also shall worship,
        Because of the LORD who is faithful,
        The Holy One of Israel;
        And He has chosen You."

Thus says the LORD:
        "In an acceptable time I have heard You,
        And in the day of salvation I have helped You;
        I will preserve You and give You
        As a covenant to the people,
        To restore the earth,
        To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages;
        That You may say to the prisoners, "Go forth,'
        To those who are in darkness, "Show yourselves.'
        "They shall feed along the roads,
        And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
        They shall neither hunger nor thirst,
        Neither heat nor sun shall strike them;
        For He who has mercy on them will lead them,
        Even by the springs of water He will guide them.

Job 38:37-end ; Job 39:1-30

Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
        Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven,
        When the dust hardens in clumps,
        And the clods cling together?
        "Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
        Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
        When they crouch in their dens,
        Or lurk in their lairs to lie in wait?
        Who provides food for the raven,
        When its young ones cry to God,
        And wander about for lack of food?

"Do you know the time when the wild mountain goats bear young?
        Or can you mark when the deer gives birth?
        Can you number the months that they fulfill?
        Or do you know the time when they bear young?
        They bow down,
        They bring forth their young,
        They deliver their offspring.
        Their young ones are healthy,
        They grow strong with grain;
        They depart and do not return to them.
        "Who set the wild donkey free?
        Who loosed the bonds of the onager,
        Whose home I have made the wilderness,
        And the barren land his dwelling?
        He scorns the tumult of the city;
        He does not heed the shouts of the driver.
        The range of the mountains is his pasture,
        And he searches after every green thing.
        "Will the wild ox be willing to serve you?
        Will he bed by your manger?
        Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes?
        Or will he plow the valleys behind you?
        Will you trust him because his strength is great?
        Or will you leave your labor to him?
        Will you trust him to bring home your grain,
        And gather it to your threshing floor?
        "The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
        But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork's?
        For she leaves her eggs on the ground,
        And warms them in the dust;
        She forgets that a foot may crush them,
        Or that a wild beast may break them.
        She treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers;
        Her labor is in vain, without concern,
        Because God deprived her of wisdom,
        And did not endow her with understanding.
        When she lifts herself on high,
        She scorns the horse and its rider.
        "Have you given the horse strength?
        Have you clothed his neck with thunder?
        Can you frighten him like a locust?
        His majestic snorting strikes terror.
        He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
        He gallops into the clash of arms.
        He mocks at fear, and is not frightened;
        Nor does he turn back from the sword.
        The quiver rattles against him,
        The glittering spear and javelin.
        He devours the distance with fierceness and rage;
        Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded.
        At the blast of the trumpet he says, "Aha!'
        He smells the battle from afar,
        The thunder of captains and shouting.
        "Does the hawk fly by your wisdom,
        And spread its wings toward the south?
        Does the eagle mount up at your command,
        And make its nest on high?
        On the rock it dwells and resides,
        On the crag of the rock and the stronghold.
        From there it spies out the prey;
        Its eyes observe from afar.
        Its young ones suck up blood;
        And where the slain are, there it is."

Son of Sirach 5:1-15

Do not rely on your wealth, or say, "I have enough."
Do not follow your inclination and strength in pursuing the desires of your heart.
Do not say, "Who can have power over me?" for the Lord will surely punish you.
Do not say, "I sinned, yet what has happened to me?" for the Lord is slow to anger.
Do not be so confident of forgiveness that you add sin to sin.
Do not say, "His mercy is great, he will forgive the multitude of my sins," for both mercy and wrath are with him, and his anger will rest on sinners.
Do not delay to turn back to the Lord, and do not postpone it from day to day; for suddenly the wrath of the Lord will come upon you, and at the time of punishment you will perish.
Do not depend on dishonest wealth, for it will not benefit you on the day of calamity.
Do not winnow in every wind, or follow every path.
Stand firm for what you know, and let your speech be consistent.
Be quick to hear, but deliberate in answering.
If you know what to say, answer your neighbor; but if not, put your hand over your mouth.
Honor and dishonor come from speaking, and the tongue of mortals may be their downfall.
Do not be called double-tongued and do not lay traps with your tongue; for shame comes to the thief, and severe condemnation to the double-tongued.
In great and small matters cause no harm.

Psalm

From the psalms of our teacher David the prophet, may his blessings be with us Amen.

Psalm 38:18 & Psalm 38:19

For I will declare my iniquity;
        I will be in anguish over my sin. But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong;
        And those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied.

Gospel

Luke 17:1-10

Then He said to the disciples, "It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, "I repent,' you shall forgive him."

And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, "Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you. And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, "Come at once and sit down to eat'? But will he not rather say to him, "Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, "We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do."'

Liturgy

Pauline Epistle

From the epistle of teacher St. Paul the apostle to the (...), may his blessings be with us Amen.

1Corinthians 14:5-17

I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.

But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching? Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle? So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without significance. Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me. Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.

Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say "Amen" at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.

The grace of God the Father be with you all. Amen.

Catholic Epistle

The catholic epistle from the epistle of our teacher St. (...), may his blessings be with us Amen. My beloved.

2Peter 3:8-15

But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation--as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,

The Acts of our fathers the Apostles, may their holy blessings be with us all. Amen.

Acts 22:17-24

"Now it happened, when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I was in a trance and saw Him saying to me, "Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, for they will not receive your testimony concerning Me.' So I said, "Lord, they know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believe on You. And when the blood of Your martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by consenting to his death, and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.' Then He said to me, "Depart, for I will send you far from here to the Gentiles."'

And they listened to him until this word, and then they raised their voices and said, "Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he is not fit to live!" Then, as they cried out and tore off their clothes and threw dust into the air, the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and said that he should be examined under scourging, so that he might know why they shouted so against him.

Psalm

From the psalms of our teacher David the prophet, may his blessings be with us Amen.

Psalm 51:2 & Psalm 51:3

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
        And cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions,
        And my sin is always before me.

Gospel

John 12:36-43

While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light." These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke:
        "Lord, who has believed our report?
        And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?"

Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again:
        "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts,
        Lest they should see with their eyes,
        Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
        So that I should heal them."

These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.