1And it came to pass in the days of Achaz the son of Joatham, the son of Ozias, king of Juda, there came up Rasim king of Aram, and Phakee son of Romelias, king of Israel, against Jerusalem to war against it, but they could not take it.
2And a message was brought to the house of David, saying, Aram has conspired with Ephraim. And his soul was amazed, and the soul of his people, as in a wood a tree is moved by the wind.
3And the Lord said to Esaias, Go forth to meet Achaz, you, and your son Jasub who is left, to the pool of the upper way of the fuller's field.
4And you shall say to him, Take care to be quiet, and fear not, neither let your soul be disheartened because of these two smoking firebrands: for when my fierce anger is over, I will heal again.
5And as for the son of Aram, and the son of Romelias, forasmuch as they have devised an evil counsel, saying,
6We will go up against Judea, and having conferred with them we will turn them away to our side, and we will make the son of Tabeel king of it;
7thus says the Lord of hosts, This counsel shall not abide, nor come to pass.
8But the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Rasim; and yet within sixty and five years the kingdom of Ephraim shall cease from being a people.
9And the head of Ephraim is Somoron, and the head of Somoron the son of Romelias: but if you⌃ believe not, neither will you⌃ at all understand.
10And the Lord again spoke to Achaz, saying,
11Ask for yourself a sign of the Lord your God, in the depth or in the height.
12And Achaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord.
13And he said, Hear you⌃ now, O house of David; is it a little thing for you to contend with men? and how do you⌃ contend against the Lord?
14Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; behold, a virgin shall conceive in the womb, and shall bring forth a son, and you shall call his name Emmanuel.
Genesis 5.32-6.8 (Vespers)
1And Noe was five hundred years old, and he begot three sons, Sem, Cham, and Japheth. And it came to pass when men began to be numerous upon the earth, and daughters were born to them,
2that the sons of God having seen the daughters of men that they were beautiful, took to themselves wives of all whom they chose.
3And the Lord God said, My Spirit shall certainly not remain among these men for ever, because they are flesh, but their days shall be one hundred and twenty years.
4Now the giants were upon the earth in those days; and after that when the sons of God were wont to go in to the daughters of men, they bore children to them, those were the giants of old, the men of renown.
5And the Lord God, having seen that the wicked actions of men were multiplied upon the earth, and that every one in his heart was intently brooding over evil continually,
6then God laid it to heart that he had made man upon the earth, and he pondered it deeply.
7And God said, I will blot out man whom I have made from the face of the earth, even man with cattle, and reptiles with flying creatures of the sky, for I am grieved that I have made them.
8But Noe found grace before the Lord God.
Proverbs 6.20-7.1 (Vespers)
20My son, keep the laws of your father, and reject not the ordinances of your mother:
21but bind them upon your soul continually, and hang them as a chain about your neck.
22Whenever you walk, lead this along and let it be with you; that it may talk with you when you wake.
23For the commandment of the law is a lamp and a light; a way of life; reproof also and correction:
24to keep you continually from a married woman, and from the calumny of a strange tongue.
25Let not the desire of beauty overcome you, neither be you caught by your eyes, neither be captivated with her eyelids.
26For the value of a harlot is as much as of one loaf; and a woman hunts for the precious souls of men.
27Shall any one bind fire in his bosom, and not burn his garments?
28or will any one walk on coals of fire, and not burn his feet?
29So is he that goes in to a married woman; he shall not be held guiltless, neither any one that touches her.
30It is not to be wondered at if one should be taken stealing, for he steals that when hungry he may satisfy his soul:
31but if he should be taken, he shall repay sevenfold, and shall deliver himself by giving all his goods.
32But the adulterer through lack of sense procures destruction to his soul.
33He endures both pain and disgrace, and his reproach shall never be wiped off.
34For the soul of her husband is full of jealousy: he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35He will not forego his enmity for any ransom: neither will he be reconciled for many gifts.
1My son, keep my words, and hide with you my commandments. My son, honor the Lord, and you shall be strong; and fear none but him:
Commemorations
St. Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem
He was born in Damascus to an eminent family, and was well educated in his youth. Discontented with the wisdom of the world, he entered monastic life in the monastery of St Theodosius, where he became the lifelong friend and disciple of John Moschos. Together they visited the monasteries and hermitages of Egypt; they later wrote down their discoveries among the holy monks in the classic Spiritual Meadow. After the death of his teacher, St Sophronius traveled to Jerusalem, which had just been liberated from the Persians. He was there to see the Precious Cross returned from Persia by the Emperor Heraclius, who carried it into Jerusalem on his back. A few years later, in 634, St Sophronius was elected Patriarch of Jerusalem, where he served his flock wisely for three years and three months. He was zealous in the defense of Orthodoxy against the Monothelite heresy: He convoked a Council in Jerusalem which condemned it before it was condemned at the Sixth Ecumenical Council. The holy Patriarch even traveled to Constantinople to rebuke the Patriarch Sergius and Emperor Heraclius, who had embraced the Monothelite error.
The years of peace were few for the Holy Land; for just as the Persian Empire was decisively defeated by Heraclius, the followers of Islam erupted out of Arabia, conquering most of North Africa and the Middle East in a few years. The Saint was so grieved by the capture of Jerusalem in 637 by the Caliph Omar that begged God to take him, so that he might not live to see the desecration of the holy places. His prayer was granted, and he reposed in peace less than a year later.
St Sophronios is the author of the Life of Saint Mary of Egypt, appointed to be read in the churches during every Great Lent. He also wrote the service of the Great Blessing of the Waters. Some have attributed the Vesperal hymn “Gladsome Light” to him, but we know that it dates from before the time of St Basil the Great, who mentions it in his writings. It seems though, that St Sophronios supplemented the hymn, and that its present form is due to him.
St John Moschos, author of the Spiritual Meadow (622)
He is commemorated today along with his disciple and friend St Sophronius (see above).
Holy Martyr Pionius (250)
“A priest of Smyrna, he suffered there in the time of Decius’ persecution. They condemned him to be crucified, which was a great joy to him. And as soon as the soldiers assembled the cross and laid it on the ground, Pionius laid himself on it and stretched out his arms, calling to the soldiers to put the nails into his hands. The cross was inserted into the ground upside down, and a fire lit under the martyr’s head. There were many bystanders. Pionius closed his eyes and prayed to God within himself. The flames could not succeed in igniting even his hair, and when the fire had at last gone out and everyone thought that he was dead, Pionius opened his eyes and cried out joyfully: ‘O Lord, receive my spirit!’, and breathed his last. This saint wrote the life of St Polycarp of Smyrna, together with whom he now makes merry in the Kingdom of Christ. He suffered and was glorified in 250.” (Prologue)