Presanctified Liturgy:
Friday in the 2nd Week
40 Martyrs of Sabaste
Tone
4:
Now
is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation. /
In
the multitude of Thy mercy visit my soul, /
and
release me from the burden of my transgressions, //
for
Thou alone lovest mankind.
Twice
Tone
1:
At
the prayers, O Lord, of all the saints and of the Theotokos, /
grant us Thy peace and have mercy upon us, //
for
Thou only art compassionate.
The
confession of faith that ye made in the arena, O ye saints, /
filled with fear the hosts of demons /
and
set men free from error. /
As
ye were beheaded ye cried out: /
“May
the sacrifice of our souls be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord; /
for
desiring Thee who lovest man, //
we
have despised this quickly passing life.”
Wise
was the exchange ye made, O saints! /
Ye
gave your blood, and received heaven as your reward; /
ye
suffered tribulation for a time,/
and now make glad
eternally. /
Wisely
have ye traded: /
forsaking things corruptible, /
ye
have received things incorruptible; /
and
rejoicing with the choirs of angels //
ye
sing continually the praises of the consubstantial Trinity.
O
martyrs worthy of all praise, /
your bodies were not buried in the earth, /
yet
heaven has received you; /
the
gates of
and
entering within ye have eaten from the tree of life. /
Pray
to Christ that He may grant peace //
and
great mercy to our souls.
Tone
2:
Valiantly enduring real
torments, /
rejoicing in that for which they longed, /
the holy martyrs said one to another: /
“If we do not shed our
garments, /
we cannot put off the old man. /
Winter is cruel, but paradise
is sweet; /
the ice is painful, but the acquisition of the Kingdom is
delightful. /
Then, let us not give way, O
warriors! /
Let us endure but a little
while, /
that we may be crowned with crowns of victory by Christ
God, //
the Savior of our souls.”
Casting off all their
garments /
and entering the lake with trembling, /
the holy martyrs said one to another: /
“Let us not spare today our
corruptible garments, /
that we may attain the paradise which we have lost! /
Having once been clothed
because of the pernicious serpent, /
let us now unclothe ourselves for the resurrection of
all. /
Let us disdain the frigid ice
and despise the flesh, /
that we may be crowned with crowns of victory by Christ
God, //
the Savior of our souls!” Twice
Seeing tortures as delight, /
running to the frozen lake as to a warm spring, /
the holy martyrs said: /
“Let us not fear the season
of winter, /
that we may avoid the fearsome fire of Gehenna; /
let our legs be consumed by fire, /
that they may dance eternally; /
let our arms be cut off, /
that they may stretch themselves forth unto the Lord; /
let us not spare our mortal nature; /
let us submit to death, /
that we may be crowned with crowns of victory by Christ
God, //
the Savior of our souls.”
Glory…
Same Tone:
Valiantly enduring real
torments, /
rejoicing in that for which they longed, /
the holy martyrs said one to another: /
“If we do not shed our
garments, /
we cannot put off the old man. /
Winter is cruel, but paradise
is sweet; /
the ice is painful, but the acquisition of the Kingdom is
delightful. /
Then, let us not give way, O
warriors! /
Let us endure but a little
while, /
that we may be crowned with crowns of victory by Christ
God, //
the Savior of our souls.”
Both
now… Tone 1:
Let
us hymn the Virgin Mary, /
the
glory of the whole world, /
who
sprang forth from men and gave birth unto the Master, /
the
portal of heaven, and the subject of the hymnody of the incorporeal hosts; /
for
she hath been shown to be heaven and the temple of the Godhead. /
Having
destroyed the middle-wall of enmity, /
she
hath brought forth peace and opened wide the kingdom. /
Therefore,
having her as the confirmation of our faith, /
we
have as champion the Lord born of her. /
Be
of good courage! Yea, be ye of good
cheer, O people of God, //
for
He vanquisheth the foe, in that He is almighty!
Tone
4: Let Thy
mercy and Thy truth continually help me.
Stichos:
With patience I waited patiently for the Lord, and He was attentive unto
me.
Lesson:
Genesis 5:32 - 6:8
Tone
6: I said:
O Lord, have mercy on me, heal my soul.
Three
Isaiah 43:9-14
Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9
Wisdom of Solomon 5:15-24; 6:1-3