Readings for Wednesday 1 January 2025
23 Kiyahk 1741
Vespers Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 105 : 14 - 15
| 14 | He permitted no one to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, |
| 15 | Saying, "Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm." |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint Luke the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Luke 11 : 37 - 51
| 37 | And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. So He went in and sat down to eat. |
| 38 | When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner. |
| 39 | Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. |
| 40 | Foolish ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? |
| 41 | But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you. |
| 42 | "But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. |
| 43 | Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. |
| 44 | Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them." |
| 45 | Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also." |
| 46 | And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. |
| 47 | Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. |
| 48 | In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. |
| 49 | Therefore the wisdom of God also said, "I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' |
| 50 | that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, |
| 51 | from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation. |
Glory be to God forever.
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Matins Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 105 : 26,27,45
| 26 | He sent Moses His servant, And Aaron whom He had chosen. |
| 27 | They performed His signs among them, And wonders in the land of Ham. |
| 45 | That they might observe His statutes And keep His laws. Praise the LORD! |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint Matthew the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Matthew 17 : 1 - 9
| 1 | Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; |
| 2 | and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. |
| 3 | And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. |
| 4 | Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." |
| 5 | While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!" |
| 6 | And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. |
| 7 | But Jesus came and touched them and said, "Arise, and do not be afraid." |
| 8 | When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. |
| 9 | Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead." |
Glory be to God forever.
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Divine Liturgy
Pauline Epistle
Paul, the servant of our Lord Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, appointed to the Gospel of God. A reading from the Epistle of our teacher Paul to the Hebrews.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.
Hebrews 11 : 17 - 27
| 17 | By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, |
| 18 | of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," |
| 19 | concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. |
| 20 | By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. |
| 21 | By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. |
| 22 | By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones. |
| 23 | By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king's command. |
| 24 | By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, |
| 25 | choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, |
| 26 | esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. |
| 27 | By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. |
The grace of God the Father be with you all. Amen.
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Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. Peter . May his blessings be upon us. Amen.
2 Peter 1:19-21 2 Peter 2:1-8
| 19 | And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; |
| 20 | knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, |
| 21 | for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. |
| 1 | But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. |
| 2 | And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. |
| 3 | By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. |
| 4 | For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; |
| 5 | and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; |
| 6 | and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; |
| 7 | and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked |
| 8 | (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)-- |
Do not love the world or the things in the world. The world passes away, and its desires; but he who does the will of God abides forever. Amen.
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Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of our fathers the apostles, may their blessings be with us. Amen.
Acts 15 : 21 - 29
| 21 | For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath." |
| 22 | Then it pleased the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas who was also named Barsabas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren. |
| 23 | They wrote this letter by them: The apostles, the elders, and the brethren, To the brethren who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings. |
| 24 | Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, saying, "You must be circumcised and keep the law"--to whom we gave no such commandment-- |
| 25 | it seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, |
| 26 | men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
| 27 | We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will also report the same things by word of mouth. |
| 28 | For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: |
| 29 | that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell. |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God. Amen.
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Synaxarium
Day 23 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Kiyahk.
May God make it always received, year after year, with reassurance and tranquility, while our sins are forgiven by the tender mercies of our God my fathers and brothers. Amen.
The Twenty-Third Day of the Blessed Month of Kiyahk
Departure of David, the Prophet and King
On this day, of the year
2990 of the world, the great King and the saintly honored prophet David,
the son of Jesse, departed. He was the second king over the children of
Israel and the first among their kings to walk in virtue and in justice.
He was from the tribe of Judah from Bethlehem. God chose him to be a king
over Israel, when Saul, the son of Kish, disobeyed the commandment of God.
God commanded the Prophet Samuel to anoint for Him one of the children
of Jesse, a king over Israel. Samuel chose the eldest son who had a good
appearance and was tall in stature, but God rejected him and said to Samuel,
"Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have
refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the
outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (I Samuel 16:7) Jesse
called all his sons and showed them to Samuel and he chose David and anointed
him king. God was with him in all his ways, for his purity of heart and
his meekness. He overcame Saul who wanted to kill him on several occasions.
Once Saul went out to kill David and he went into a cave to attend to his
needs. David came to him secretly and cut off a corner of Saul's robe
(I Samuel 24:4)) to show him that he wouldn't stretch his hand to kill him.
Another time David found him sleeping and he took his spear and a jug of
water that was by his head and did not hurt him and spared his life for
the second time. (I Samuel 26:1-25) When David's men told him to destroy
Saul, David said, "The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against
the Lord's anointed." (I Samuel 26:11) When a man announced to David the
news about the death of his rival Saul saying, "I stood over him and killed
him," David took hold of his own clothes and tore them and he mourned him.
David called one of the young men and said, "Go near and execute him,"
(2 Samuel 1: 11-15) and he struck the man so that he died.
God honored this Prophet
over all mankind, for he had many virtues. Besides the virtue of humility,
he was a prophet, a righteous man, and a just king. In spite of that, he
called himself a "dead dog" and a "flea". (I Samuel 24:14) God praised
him by saying, "I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after My own
heart, who will do all My will." (Acts 13:22) and (Psalms 89:20) and (1 Samuel 13:14)
God protected Jerusalem for his sake during his lifetime and after his
death, and He made the kings of the people of Israel from his seed, and
He called Himself "his Son." He prophesied in the Book of Psalms, which
is a book full of useful teachings and good instructions. David's might
and power were supported by God. When he was young and guarding his father's
sheep, once a bear and another time a lion attacked his sheep and David
killed both the bear and the lion. When the army of Israel faced the army
of the Philistines and Goliath, the champion of the Philistines, whose
height was six cubits and a span, and who was armored with a bronze helmet
on his head and a coat weighing five thousand shekels of bronze, and he
had bronze grieves on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders
and the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam and his iron spearhead
weighed six hundred shekels; Goliath went out, stood up and cried out to
the armies of Israel, "I defy the armies of Israel this day; give us a
man that we may fight together." The Philistine presented himself for forty
days, morning and evening. All of Israel heard these words and were dismayed
and greatly afraid. When David came to visit his brothers and brought provisions
to their camp, he saw and heard Goliath. David was moved with divine zeal
and said to him, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a
javelin. But I come to you in the Name of the Lord of hosts, the God of
the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." David took out a stone and
he slung it and he struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone
sank in his forehead and he fell on his face to the ground. David ran and
stood over the Philistine, took his sword and cut off his head and removed
the reproach of Israel. (I Samuel 17:51) David lived 70 years, 30 years of
which were before he became a king. He was born one thousand, one hundred
and twenty years before Christ.
May His prayers be with us all. Amen.
Departure of St.Timothy the Anchorite
On this day also, the fighter,
St. Timothy the Anchorite (Pilgrim), departed. He was born of God-loving
parents, who educated and raised him according to the church disciplines.
He desired the monastic life and became a monk in one of the monasteries.
He loved the solitary life and lived in a cell alone near the monastery.
He lived there for some time, making a living from his handiwork. The enemy
of everything that is good tried to deceive him by appearing to him in
the form of a nun who approached him to buy his handiwork. Because of her
frequent visits, a special relationship developed between them. They sat
to eat together at one table. After a short time, the saint realized the
trick of the devil to make him fall in sin. He remembered the hour of death
and the awesome nature of Judgement; consequently, he arose and took flight
from that place. God guided him to another place with a spring of water
and a palm tree. He stayed there practicing worship and asceticism. He
reached a great level in his ascetic life, to the extent that the wild
beasts befriended him. This continued for 30 years, during which his hair
became very long and spared him of wearing clothes. When he finished his
course and fought the good fight, he departed in peace.
May His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
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Divine Liturgy Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 99 : 6 - 7
| 6 | Moses and Aaron were among His priests, And Samuel was among those who called upon His name; They called upon the LORD, and He answered them. |
| 7 | He spoke to them in the cloudy pillar; They kept His testimonies and the ordinance He gave them. |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint Matthew the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Matthew 23 : 14 - 36
| 14 | Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. |
| 15 | "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. |
| 16 | "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, "Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.' |
| 17 | Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? |
| 18 | And, "Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.' |
| 19 | Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? |
| 20 | Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. |
| 21 | He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. |
| 22 | And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it. |
| 23 | "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. |
| 24 | Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! |
| 25 | "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. |
| 26 | Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. |
| 27 | "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. |
| 28 | Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. |
| 29 | "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, |
| 30 | and say, "If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.' |
| 31 | "Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. |
| 32 | Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt. |
| 33 | Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? |
| 34 | Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, |
| 35 | that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. |
| 36 | Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. |
Glory be to God forever.
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