Genesis 14.14-20 (Vespers)

14And Abram having heard that Lot his nephew had been taken captive, numbered his own home-born servants three hundred and eighteen, and pursued after them to Dan. 15And he came upon them by night, he and his servants, and he struck them and pursued them as far as Choba, which is on the left of Damascus. 16And he recovered all the cavalry of Sodom, and he recovered Lot his nephew, and all his possessions, and the women and the people. 17And the king of Sodom went out to meet him, after he returned from the slaughter of Chodollogomor, and the kings with him, to the valley of Saby; this was the plain of the kings. 18And Melchisedec king of Salem brought forth loaves and wine, and he was the priest of the most high God. 19And he blessed Abram, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, who made heaven and earth, 20and blessed be the most high God who delivered your enemies into your power. And Abram gave him the tithe of all.

Deuteronomy 1.8-11, 15-17 (Vespers)

8Behold, God has delivered the land before you; go in and inherit the land, which I swore to your fathers, Abraam, and Isaac, and Jacob, to give it to them and to their seed after them. 9And I spoke to you at that time, saying, I shall not be able by myself to bear you. 10The Lord your God has multiplied you, and, behold, you⌃ are today as the stars of heaven for multitude. 11The Lord God of your fathers add to you a thousand-fold more than you are, and bless you as he has spoken to you. 15So I took of you wise and understanding and prudent men, and I set them to rule over you as rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, and rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens, and officers to your judges. 16And I charged your judges at that time, saying, Hear causes between your brethren, and judge rightly between a man and his brother, and the stranger that is with him. 17You shall not have respect to persons in judgment, you shall judge small and great equally; you shall not shrink from before the person of a man, for the judgment is God's; and whatever matter shall be too hard for you, you⌃ shall bring it to me, and I will hear it.

Deuteronomy 10.14-21 (Vespers)

14Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens belong to the Lord your God, the earth and all things that are in it. 15Only the Lord chose your fathers to love them, and he chose out their seed after them, even you, beyond all nations, as at this day. 16Therefore you⌃ shall circumcise the hardness of your heart, and you⌃ shall not harden your neck. 17For the Lord your God, he is God of gods, and the Lord of lords, the great, and strong, and terrible God, who does not accept persons, nor will he by any means accept a bribe: 18executing judgment for the stranger and orphan and widow, and he loves the stranger to give him food and raiment. 19And you⌃ shall love the stranger; for you⌃ were strangers in the land of Egypt. 20You shall fear the Lord your God, and serve him, and shall cleave to him, and shall swear by his name. 21He is your boast, and he is your God, who has wrought in the midst of you these great and glorious things, which your eyes have seen.

Luke 24.12-35 (5th Matins Gospel)

12But Peter got up and ran to the tomb. Stooping and looking in, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he departed to his home, wondering what had happened.

13Behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was sixty stadia from Jerusalem. 14They talked with each other about all of these things which had happened. 15While they talked and questioned together, Jesus himself came near, and went with them. 16But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17He said to them, “What are you talking about as you walk, and are sad?”

18One of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who doesn’t know the things which have happened there in these days?”

19He said to them, “What things?” They said to him, “The things concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people; 20and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21But we were hoping that it was he who would redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22Also, certain women of our company amazed us, having arrived early at the tomb; 23and when they didn’t find his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24Some of us went to the tomb and found it just like the women had said, but they didn’t see him.”

25He said to them, “Foolish people, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26Didn’t the Christ have to suffer these things and to enter into his glory?” 27Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

28They came near to the village where they were going, and he acted like he would go further.

29They urged him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is almost evening, and the day is almost over.” He went in to stay with them. 30When he had sat down at the table with them, he took the bread and gave thanks. Breaking it, he gave it to them. 31Their eyes were opened and they recognized him; then he vanished out of their sight. 32They said to one another, “Weren’t our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us along the way, and while he opened the Scriptures to us?” 33They rose up that very hour, returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and those who were with them, 34saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35They related the things that happened along the way, and how he was recognized by them in the breaking of the bread.

2 Corinthians 6.1-10 (Epistle)

1Working together, we entreat also that you do not receive the grace of God in vain.

2For he says, “At an acceptable time I listened to you. In a day of salvation I helped you.” Behold, now is the acceptable time. Behold, now is the day of salvation. 3We give no occasion of stumbling in anything, that our service may not be blamed, 4but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God: in great endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in distresses, 5in beatings, in imprisonments, in riots, in labors, in watchings, in fastings, 6in pureness, in knowledge, in perseverance, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in sincere love, 7in the word of truth, in the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report, as deceivers and yet true, 9as unknown and yet well known, as dying and behold—we live, as punished and not killed, 10as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things.

Hebrews 13.7-16 (Epistle, Fathers)

7Remember your leaders, men who spoke to you the word of God, and considering the results of their conduct, imitate their faith. 8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9Don’t be carried away by various and strange teachings, for it is good that the heart be established by grace, not by foods, through which those who were so occupied were not benefited.

10We have an altar from which those who serve the holy tabernacle have no right to eat. 11For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside of the camp. 12Therefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people through his own blood, suffered outside of the gate. 13Let’s therefore go out to him outside of the camp, bearing his reproach. 14For we don’t have here an enduring city, but we seek that which is to come. 15Through him, then, let’s offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which proclaim allegiance to his name. 16But don’t forget to be doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Luke 8.5-15 (Gospel)

5“The farmer went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell along the road, and it was trampled under foot, and the birds of the sky devoured it. 6Some seed fell on the rock, and as soon as it grew, it withered away, because it had no moisture. 7Some fell amid the thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. 8Some fell into the good ground and grew and produced one hundred times as much fruit.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

9Then his disciples asked him, “What does this parable mean?”

10He said, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of God’s Kingdom, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’

11“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12Those along the road are those who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, that they may not believe and be saved. 13Those on the rock are they who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; but these have no root. They believe for a while, then fall away in time of temptation. 14What fell among the thorns, these are those who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life; and they bring no fruit to maturity. 15Those in the good ground, these are those who with an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it tightly, and produce fruit with perseverance.

John 17.1-13 (Gospel, Fathers)

1Jesus said these things, then lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify you; 2even as you gave him authority over all flesh, so he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ. 4I glorified you on the earth. I have accomplished the work which you have given me to do. 5Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed.

6“I revealed your name to the people whom you have given me out of the world. They were yours, and you have given them to me. They have kept your word. 7Now they have known that all things whatever you have given me are from you, 8for the words which you have given me I have given to them; and they received them, and knew for sure that I came from you. They have believed that you sent me. 9I pray for them. I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10All things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them through your name which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are. 12While I was with them in the world, I kept them in your name. I have kept those whom you have given me. None of them is lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13But now I come to you, and I say these things in the world, that they may have my joy made full in themselves.

Martyrs Carpus, Papylus, Agathodorus and Agathonica, at Pergamus

Saint Carpus was Bishop of Thyatira, and Papylus was his deacon. In the reign of the Emperor Decius, both were arrested as Christians and put to torture. Agathodorus their servant and Agathonica, Papylus’ sister, willingly followed after them and voluntarily confessed Christ also. After many sufferings, all four were beheaded.

Holy Martyr Zlata (Chryse) (1796)

“Born in the village of Slatina in the Meglin region [of Bulgaria], of poor peasants who had three other daughters, St Zlata was a meek and devout girl, wise with Christ’s wisdom and golden (‘zlata’ means ‘gold’) not only in name but also in her God-fearing heart. When Zlata went out one day to get water, some shameless Turks seized her and carried her off to their house. When one of them urged her to embrace Islam and become his wife, Zlata answered fearlessly: ‘I believe in Christ, and know Him alone as my bridegroom; I shall never deny Him even if you put me to a thousand tortures and cut me into pieces.’ Her parents and sisters then arrived, and said to her: ‘O our daughter, have mercy on yourself and us. Deny Christ publicly, that we can all be happy. Christ is merciful; He will forgive your sin, committed under the pressure of life.’ Her poor parents and kinsfolk wept bitterly. But Zlata’s heroic soul would not be overcome by devilish seduction. She replied to her parents: ‘When you urge me to deny Christ, the true God, you are no longer parents or sisters to me; I have the Lord Jesus Christ as father, the Mother of God as mother and, for brothers and sisters, the saints.’ Then the Turks threw her into prison, where she lay for three months, and they took her out every day and flogged her until her blood flowed onto the ground. Finally, they hanged her upside-down and made a fire to choke her to death with the smoke. But God was with Zlata, and gave her strength in her suffering. At the very end, they hanged her from a tree and cut her into small pieces. Thus this martyr-maiden gave her soul into God’s hands, and entered into the realm of Paradise, in 1796. Pieces of her relics were taken by Christians to their homes, that they might bring a blessing to them.” (Prologue)