Amshir 13, 1746 AM <-> February 20 2030 <->The Readings for today

Wednesday 20 February 2030
13 Amshir 1746
Readings for Wednesday The Fast of Ninevah

Prophecy

From the Book of Jonah , may his holy blessings be with us all. Amen

Jonah 3 : 1 - 10

¹	Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying,

²	"Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you."

³	So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three-day journey in extent.

⁴	And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day's walk. Then he cried out and said, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!"

⁵	So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.

⁶	Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in ashes.

⁷	And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water.

⁸	But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, let every one turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands.

⁹	Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?

¹⁰	Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.

Jonah 4 : 1 - 11

¹	But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry.

²	So he prayed to the LORD, and said, "Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.

³	Therefore now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!"

⁴	Then the LORD said, "Is it right for you to be angry?"

⁵	So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city.

⁶	And the LORD God prepared a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah was very grateful for the plant.

⁷	But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered.

⁸	And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah's head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, "It is better for me to die than to live."

⁹	Then God said to Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?" And he said, "It is right for me to be angry, even to death!"

¹⁰	But the LORD said, "You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night.

¹¹	And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left--and much livestock?"

Glory be to the Holy Trinity, our God, forever and unto the ages of all ages. Amen.

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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 103 : 13,12

¹³	As a father pities his children, So the LORD pities those who fear Him.

¹²	As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

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 11 : 25 - 30

²⁵	At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.

²⁶	Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.

²⁷	All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

²⁸	Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

²⁹	Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

³⁰	For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

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 Ephesians.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.

Ephesians 2 : 1 - 23

¹	And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins,

²	in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,

³	among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

⁴	But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

⁵	even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

⁶	and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

⁷	that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

⁸	For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

⁹	not of works, lest anyone should boast.

¹⁰	For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

¹¹	Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh--who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands--

¹²	that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

¹³	But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

¹⁴	For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,

¹⁵	having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,

¹⁶	and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

¹⁷	And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.

¹⁸	For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.

¹⁹	Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,

²⁰	having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,

²¹	in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,

²²	in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

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

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Catholic Epistle

A Reading from Epistle of St. John . May his blessings be upon us. Amen.

1 John 2 : 12 - 17

¹²	I write to you, little children, Because your sins are forgiven you for His name's sake.

¹³	I write to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, Because you have overcome the wicked one. I write to you, little children, Because you have known the Father.

¹⁴	I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.

¹⁵	Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

¹⁶	For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world.

¹⁷	And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

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 : 12 - 20

¹²	Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles.

¹³	And after they had become silent, James answered, saying, "Men and brethren, listen to me:

¹⁴	Simon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name.

¹⁵	And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:

¹⁶	'After this I will return And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down; I will rebuild its ruins, And I will set it up;

¹⁷	So that the rest of mankind may seek the LORD. Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name, Says the LORD who does all these things.'

¹⁸	"Known to God from eternity are all His works.

¹⁹	Therefore I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God,

²⁰	but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood.

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 13 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Amshir.
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 Thirteenth Day of the Blessed Month of Amshir

Martyrdom of St.Sergius of Atripe and His Father, Mother, Sister, and Many Others with Them

On this day, St. Sergius, his father, his mother, his sister and many others with them, were martyred. This saint was born in the city of Atripe to a righteous father whose name was Theodore, and a faithful mother whose name was Mary. When he was 20 years old, St. Sergius desired to die for the Name of the Lord Christ. He presented himself to Cyprianus (Cyprian), the governor, and confessed his faith in the Lord Christ. The governor commanded him to be tortured with different kinds of tortures and to cast him in prison. At night he saw in a vision as if he was in heaven, and he saw the mansions of the saints. His soul was greatly comforted, and the Lord Christ healed him from his afflictions. A priest by the name of Mansoon heard about the labors of St. Sergius. Fr. Mansoon came with two deacons to Atripe and confessed the Name of the Lord Christ before the governor. The governor beat them with great cruelty. A multitude of people watched the tortures, and moved with compassion toward the priest, who could not do anything but to look at them, preach and command them to be steadfast in their faith in the Lord Christ. He prayed and blessed them and they all confessed the Orthodox faith. After they had been tortured, they were all beheaded, and received the crown of life. However, the Governor tortured the priest with fire, but the Lord saved him. The Governor sent him to Alexandria where he received his crown of martyrdom.

As for St. Sergius, Governor Cyprianus brought him and tortured him with excruciating tortures but the Lord healed, strengthened and comforted him. They brought an idol and ordered him to worship it. He kicked the idol with his foot and it fell and broke. Cyprianus believed instantly and said, "The god that cannot save itself, cannot save others." The captain of the soldiers "Ohios" continued to torture St. Sergius, and ordered to skin him and to rub his wounds with salt and vinegar, but the Lord gave him strength and grace. His mother and his sister came to visit him and saw him in this condition, they wept bitterly, until his sister died from her extreme grief, but God raised her up by the prayers of the saint. St. Julius of Agfahs came, wrote the biography of St. Sergius, and promised him that he would take care of his body and his burial. The captain "Ohios" ordered that St. Sergius be tortured by pressing his body through the pressing wheel (Hinbazeen), that his nails be pulled out, that he be placed over an iron bed, with a fire under it, and that torches of fire be placed in his ears. The Lord strengthened him through all of this and healed him. When "Ohios" the captain was tired of torturing him, he decided to behead him.

St. Sergius called his mother and sister to bid them farewell. They came with the rest of his family and when they saw him tied up with the bridle of a horse that was dragging him to the place of his martyrdom, they protested to the Governor for his extreme cruelty. He ordered to behead them all and they all received the crown of life and the eternal bliss. There was a young boy among the crowd whose eyes were opened by the Lord and he saw the souls of the saints who were martyred carried by the angels, ascending to heaven. He cried with a loud voice saying, "O My Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy upon me." His parents were afraid that the governor would hear him and destroy them because of him. When they could not calm him down, they put their hands upon his mouth to prevent him from screaming, asking the help of the Lord Christ, until he gave up his pure soul at the hand of the Lord.

May Their prayers be with us all. Amen.

Departure of St.Timothy the Third, the Thirty-Second Pope of Alexandria

On this day also of the year 528 A.D., the holy father Abba Timothy III, 32nd Pope of Alexandria, departed. His enthronement on the apostolic throne was in 511 A.D. He suffered many hardships because he was steadfast in the Orthodox faith. In his days, St. Severus, Patriarch of Antioch, came to Egypt escaping persecution. The two saints traveled together to Egyptian cities and monasteries confirming the people in the Orthodox faith. Because he did not agree with Emperor Marcion with regard to the canons of the Council of Chalcedon, he was exiled. On the day of his exile, the faithful opposed the enforcement of the order of his exile, and many of them were killed, about two hundred thousand, by the order of the Emperor. The saint departed in exile together with St. Severus of Antioch, after he had been on the apostolic throne for 17 years.

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 32 : 1,5

¹	Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.

⁵	I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.Selah

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 15 : 32 - 16 : 4

³²	Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."

³³	Then His disciples said to Him, "Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?"

³⁴	Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" And they said, "Seven, and a few little fish."

³⁵	So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.

³⁶	And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.

³⁷	So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.

³⁸	Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.

³⁹	And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.

¹	Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.

²	He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, "It will be fair weather, for the sky is red';

³	and in the morning, "It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.' Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.

⁴	A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." And He left them and departed.

Glory be to God forever.

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