Isaiah 41.4-14 (6th Hour)

4Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he. 5The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth were afraid, drew near, and came. 6They helped every one his neighbour; and every one said to his brother, Be of good courage. 7So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved. 8But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend. 9Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.

10Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. 11Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. 12Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. 13For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee. 14Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

Genesis 17.1-9 (Vespers)

1And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 2And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. 3And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,

4As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. 5Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. 6And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

7And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 8And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

9And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

Proverbs 15.20-16.9 (LXX) (Vespers)

20A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish man despiseth his mother. 21Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walketh uprightly. 22Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established. 23A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it! 24The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath. 25The LORD will destroy the house of the proud: but he will establish the border of the widow. 26The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD: but the words of the pure are pleasant words. 27He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live. 28The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things. 29The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous. 30The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart: and a good report maketh the bones fat. 31The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise. 32He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding. 33The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.

1The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD. 2All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits. 3Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established. 4The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. 5Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. 6By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil. 7When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. 8Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right. 9A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.

Hebrews 2.11-18 (Epistle, Theotokos)

11For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. 13And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me. 14Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

Luke 1.24-38 (Gospel, Theotokos)

24And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying, 25Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men. 26And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 30And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. 36And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. 37For with God nothing shall be impossible. 38And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel

Each of the Great Feasts of the Church is followed by a commemoration of some holy one who figures in the events of the Feast. So, today we commemorate the Holy Archangel Gabriel, who brought the glad news of the conception of Christ to Mary, the Theotokos. The Prologue gives the following teaching:

“The herald of the incarnation of the Son of God, he is one of the seven great angels who stand before the throne of God. He revealed to Zacharias the birth of the Forerunner, and said of himself: ‘I am Gabriel that stand in the presence of God’ (Lk. 1:19). His name, Gabriel, signifies ‘man of God’. Speaking about the Annunciation, the holy Fathers comment that an angel with such a name was sent to signify who He was, and of what nature He was, who would be born of the most pure Virgin. He would be the Man of God, the Man-God, the strong and mighty God. Others have found that it was this same Gabriel who announced the conception of the Virgin Mary to Joachim and Anna, and that it was he who taught Moses in the wilderness to write the Book of Genesis. The holy Fathers consider that Gabriel belongs to the foremost and highest order of the heavenly powers, the seraphim, since the seraphim stand closest to God. And so he is one of the seven seraphim closest to God. The names of these seven are: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Selathiel, Jegudiel and Barachiel. Some would add Jeremiel to this number. Each has his own particular service, but all are equal in honour. Why did God not send Michael? For the reason that Michael’s service is the suppression of the enemies of God’s truth, while Gabriel’s is the annunciation of the salvation of the human race.”