Readings for Thursday 12 September 2024
2 Tut 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 52 : 8,9
| 8 | But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. |
| 9 | I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good. |
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 14 : 1 - 12
| 1 | At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report about Jesus |
| 2 | and said to his servants, "This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him." |
| 3 | For Herod had laid hold of John and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife. |
| 4 | Because John had said to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." |
| 5 | And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet. |
| 6 | But when Herod's birthday was celebrated, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. |
| 7 | Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. |
| 8 | So she, having been prompted by her mother, said, "Give me John the Baptist's head here on a platter." |
| 9 | And the king was sorry; nevertheless, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he commanded it to be given to her. |
| 10 | So he sent and had John beheaded in prison. |
| 11 | And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. |
| 12 | Then his disciples came and took away the body and buried it, and went and told Jesus. |
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 92 : 10,14,15
| 10 | But my horn You have exalted like a wild ox; I have been anointed with fresh oil. |
| 14 | They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, |
| 15 | To declare that the LORD is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. |
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 9 : 7 - 12
| 7 | Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, |
| 8 | and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. |
| 9 | Herod said, "John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?" So he sought to see Him. |
| 10 | And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. |
| 11 | But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. |
| 12 | When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here." |
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 11:32-40 Hebrews 12:1-2
| 32 | And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: |
| 33 | who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, |
| 34 | quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. |
| 35 | Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. |
| 36 | Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. |
| 37 | They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented-- |
| 38 | of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. |
| 39 | And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, |
| 40 | God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us. |
| 1 | Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, |
| 2 | looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. |
The grace of God the Father be with you all. Amen.
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Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. James . May his blessings be upon us. Amen.
James 5 : 9 - 20
| 9 | Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! |
| 10 | My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. |
| 11 | Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. |
| 12 | But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your "Yes" be "Yes," and your "No,No," lest you fall into judgment. |
| 13 | Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. |
| 14 | Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. |
| 15 | And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. |
| 16 | Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. |
| 17 | Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. |
| 18 | And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. |
| 19 | Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, |
| 20 | let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins. |
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 12 : 1 - 12
| 1 | Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. |
| 2 | Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword. |
| 3 | And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also. Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread. |
| 4 | So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover. |
| 5 | Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. |
| 6 | And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison. |
| 7 | Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, "Arise quickly!" And his chains fell off his hands. |
| 8 | Then the angel said to him, "Gird yourself and tie on your sandals"; and so he did. And he said to him, "Put on your garment and follow me." |
| 9 | So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. |
| 10 | When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. |
| 11 | And when Peter had come to himself, he said, "Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people." |
| 12 | So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying. |
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 2 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Tut.
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 Second Day of the Blessed Month of Tut
Martyrdom of St.John the Baptist
On this day Saint John the
Baptist, son of Zacharias the priest, became a martyr by the order of King
Herod. When St.John, the prophet, rebuked Herod because of Herodias, the
wife of his brother Philip whom he had taken to be his wife, and said to
him, "It is not right for thee to take thy brother's wife," Herod took
the Saint and cast him into prison, for he was afraid of him. When Herod's
birthday came, he gave a a supper for the lords of his kingdom, and
the chief estates of Galilee, and his brother's daughter came in, and danced
and pleased him. He promised her anything she might ask for, even as much
as half his kingdom. She went unto her mother and said unto her, "What
shall I ask?" Her mother said, "Ask for the head of John the Baptist on
a platter." When Herod heard this, he was exceedingly sorry. But because
of his promise and those who were sitting with him, he would not reject
her request. He therefore commanded his servants to cut off the head
of Saint John and they gave it to the damsel and the damsel gave it to
her mother.
(Mark 6:20-28) There was great consternation that day, and
their joy soon turned into sorrow. It was even said that when the holy
head of St.John was cut off, it flew up into the air, out of the hands
of the soldiers, and it cried out saying, "It is not right for thee to
take thy brother's wife." It is also said that the head is present at Homs
in Syria. The disciples of St.John came and took his holy body and laid
it in a grave until the days of Pope Athanasius, whom God commanded
to uncover the body.
May his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Martyrdom of St.Daysa the Soldier
On this day also departed
Daysa the soldier, a native of the city of Tanda. Arianus the governor
of Ansena inflicted great tortures on this Saint because of his faith in
the Lord Jesus Christ. He cut off his head with a sword, and Daysa received
the crown of martyrdom.
May his blessings be with us all and Glory be to 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 92 : 12 - 13
| 12 | The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. |
| 13 | Those who are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God. |
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 Mark the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Mark 6 : 14 - 29
| 14 | Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him." |
| 15 | Others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets." |
| 16 | But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!" |
| 17 | For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her. |
| 18 | Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." |
| 19 | Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; |
| 20 | for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. |
| 21 | Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. |
| 22 | And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you." |
| 23 | He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom." |
| 24 | So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!" |
| 25 | Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." |
| 26 | And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. |
| 27 | Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, |
| 28 | brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. |
| 29 | When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb. |
Glory be to God forever.
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