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.
Wisdom of Solomon 3.1-9 (Vespers)
1But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and there shall no torment touch them.
2In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die: and their departure is taken for misery,
3And their going from us to be utter destruction: but they are in peace.
4For though they be punished in the sight of men, yet is their hope full of immortality.
5And having been a little chastised, they shall be greatly rewarded: for God proved them, and found them worthy for himself.
6As gold in the furnace has he tried them, and received them as a burnt offering.
7And in the time of their visitation they shall shine, and run to and fro like sparks among the stubble.
8They shall judge the nations, and have dominion over the people, and their Lord shall reign for ever.
9They that put their trust in him shall understand the truth: and such as be faithful in love shall abide with him: for grace and mercy is to his saints, and he has care for his elect.
John 10.9-16
(Matins Gospel)
9I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out and will find pasture.
10The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.
11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who doesn’t own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and flees. The wolf snatches the sheep and scatters them.
13The hired hand flees because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care for the sheep.
14I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and I’m known by my own;
15even as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep.
16I have other sheep which are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice. They will become one flock with one shepherd.
1 John 3.10-20 (Epistle)
10In this the children of God are revealed, and the children of the devil. Whoever doesn’t do righteousness is not of God, neither is he who doesn’t love his brother.
11For this is the message which you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another—
12unlike Cain, who was of the evil one and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s righteous.
13Don’t be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.
14We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. He who doesn’t love his brother remains in death.
15Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.
16By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
17But whoever has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, then closes his heart of compassion against him, how does God’s love remain in him?
18My little children, let’s not love in word only, or with the tongue only, but in deed and truth.
19And by this we know that we are of the truth and persuade our hearts before him,
20because if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
Hebrews 13.7-16
(Epistle, Hierarchs)
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.
Mark 14.10-42 (Gospel)
10Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went away to the chief priests, that he might deliver him to them.
11They, when they heard it, were glad, and promised to give him money. He sought how he might conveniently deliver him.
12On the first day of unleavened bread, when they sacrificed the Passover, his disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and prepare that you may eat the Passover?”
13He sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and there a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him,
14and wherever he enters in, tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’
15He will himself show you a large upper room furnished and ready. Get ready for us there.”
16His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found things as he had said to them, and they prepared the Passover.
17When it was evening he came with the twelve.
18As they sat and were eating, Jesus said, “Most certainly I tell you, one of you will betray me—he who eats with me.”
19They began to be sorrowful, and to ask him one by one, “Surely not I?” And another said, “Surely not I?”
20He answered them, “It is one of the twelve, he who dips with me in the dish.
21For the Son of Man goes as it is written about him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for that man if he had not been born.”
22As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had blessed it, he broke it and gave to them, and said, “Take, eat. This is my body.”
23He took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave to them. They all drank of it.
24He said to them, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many.
25Most certainly I tell you, I will no more drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in God’s Kingdom.”
26When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
27Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of me tonight, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’
28However, after I am raised up, I will go before you into Galilee.”
29But Peter said to him, “Although all will be offended, yet I will not.”
30Jesus said to him, “Most certainly I tell you that you today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.”
31But he spoke all the more, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” They all said the same thing.
32They came to a place which was named Gethsemane. He said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.”
33He took with him Peter, James, and John, and began to be greatly troubled and distressed.
34He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”
35He went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him.
36He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Please remove this cup from me. However, not what I desire, but what you desire.”
37He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Couldn’t you watch one hour?
38Watch and pray, that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
39Again he went away and prayed, saying the same words.
40Again he returned and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they didn’t know what to answer him.
41He came the third time and said to them, “Sleep on now, and take your rest. It is enough. The hour has come. Behold, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
42Arise! Let’s get going. Behold, he who betrays me is at hand.”
Matthew 5.14-19
(Gospel, Hierarchs)
14“You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden.
15Neither do you light a lamp and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house.
16Even so, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
17“Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished.
19Therefore, whoever shall break one of these least commandments and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Commemorations
Synaxis of the Three Holy Hierarchs: St Basil the Great, St Gregory the Theologian, and St John Chrysostom
This feast was instituted during the reign of Alexis I Comnenus (1081 1118). A dispute arose in Constantinople among various prominent citizens and clergy, about which of the three Fathers Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, or St John Chrysostom was the greatest. In typically Byzantine fashion, the people of the City joined into the dispute, which became more animated, dividing the populace into three hostile factions styling themselves Basilians, Gregorians and Joannites. At last, desiring to restore peace to the City and the Church, the three holy hierarchs themselves appeared to the monk John Mauropus; they revealed to him that they stand together in harmony and in equal glory before the heavenly throne, and instructed him to compose a common service for the three of them. Saint John (Mauropus) obeyed, and chose January 30 as the date of the commemoration, since each of the three hierarchs is commemorated separately in January.
Saint Peter, King of Bulgaria (970)
“Saint Peter was a humble, devout and peace-loving man, unlike his father, Tsar Symeon the Warrior (d. 927), during whose reign there had been perpetual warfare. By contrast, Peter’s long reign was peaceful, and notable for the restoration of good relations with Byzantium and with the West. Peter married Maria, the grand-daughter of the Emperor Romanus Lecapenus, who recognized him as basileus (tsar or king), and he obtained independence from Constantinople for the Bulgarian Church with its own Patriarch. He had a great love for Saint John of Rila (19 Oct.), whom he would often consult, and he kept in touch with renowned ascetics of the time like Saint Paul of Latros (15 Dec.). The King acted energetically against the Bogomil heresy, an offshoot of Manicheism, by which some of his people, lacking sufficient instruction in the faith, were being misled. He called a council in order to condemn the heresy and reassert Christian principles. Nevertheless, the infection was to remain active for many years in Bulgaria. Following the invasion of the north of his Kingdom by Prince Svyatoslav of Kiev in 969, Peter abdicated and became a monk. He died in the following year, having consecrated his final days to God alone.” (Synaxarion)
A note on the Bogomils: The Bogomils flourished in the Eastern Europe as an organized church from the 10th to the 15th century. In theology they were dualistic, incorporating some Manichean and Gnostic ideas from the Paulicians. They were nationalistic and gained much support through their opposition to Byzantine dominance over the Slavic peoples. They disappeared as an organized body around the fifteenth century, but elements of their beliefs persisted in popular thinking for many centuries afterward.