Variable Portions of the Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts
4th Wednesday in Great Lent
“Lord I Call” Stichera
Begin “Lord, I Call” in Tone 4
The following are chanted at the end of Psalm 142:
Reader: Bring my soul out of prison, that I may confess Thy name.
The righteous shall await me for Thou wilt recompense me.
Out of the depths have I cried to Thee, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.
If Thou, O Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But with Thee, there is forgiveness.
Tone 4 The fast, the means of receiving blessings,
has now led us mid-way through its course,
pleasing God with the days that have passed
and proposing purposeful tasks for the days ahead,
for the increase of blessings produces a greater number
of good deeds.
Therefore, let us cry to Christ, the Giver of all blessings:
O Thou who didst fast and endure the Cross for our sake,
enable us to partake uncondemned of Thy divine Pascha,
to lead our lives in peace,
worthily glorifying Thee with the Father and the Spirit.
Because of Thy name, I have waited for Thee, O Lord; my soul has waited for Thy word; my soul has hoped on the Lord.
Tone 5 Those who thirst for spiritual blessings
perform their good deeds in secret,
not noising them abroad in markets,
but cherishing and keeping them in their hearts.
For He who sees all that is done in secret
will reward us for our abstinence.
Let us fulfill the fast without sad faces,
but ceaselessly praying in the depths of our hearts:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
Reader: From the morning watch until night, from the morning watch,
let Israel hope on the Lord.
Tone 5 With boundless love in your souls, O holy martyrs,
you did not forsake Christ.
Enduring the various wounds of suffering,
you laid low the torturers’ impudence.
Preserving unbending and unshakeable faith,
you were translated to heaven.
Since you received boldness before Him,
entreat Him to grant peace to the world,
and for our souls great mercy.
Reader: For with the Lord there is mercy and with Him is plentious redemption, and He will deliver Israel from all his iniquities.
Tone 1 Let us cleanse our souls with the water of the fast.
Let us draw near to the precious and pure Cross of the Lord, venerating it in faith and drawing divine enlightenment,
even now obtaining eternal salvation,
peace, and great mercy.
Reader: Praise the Lord, all nations. Praise Him, all peoples.
Tone 1 O Cross, boast of apostles,
surrounded by principalities, powers, and archangels.
Save those who bow before you from all harm,
and enable us to fulfill well the divine course of abstinence,
to attain to the saving day, by which we are saved.
Reader: For His mercy is confirmed on us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever.
Tone 7 Today, as we before the Cross of the Lord, let us cry:
Rejoice, O Tree of Life, the tormentor of hell.
Rejoice, O Joy of the world, the destroyer of corruption.
Rejoice, O Power which drives out demons.
Rejoice, O Confirmation of the faithful, invincible weapon.
Preserve and sanctify those who kiss you!
Reader: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
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Theotokion in the tone of the week
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The Readings from Holy Scripture
4th Wednesday in Great Lent
Priest: Let us attend! Peace be unto all!
Reader: And to your spirit!
Priest: Wisdom!
Reader: The Prokeimenon in the 4th Tone: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
People: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
Reader: Give the King Thy justice, O God, and Thy righteousness to the Royal Son.
People: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
Reader: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel.
People: Who alone does wondrous things.
Priest: Wisdom!
Reader: The Reading is from Genesis.
Priest: Let us attend!
Genesis 9:18-10:1
Reader: Now the sons of Noah who went out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And Ham was the father of Canaan. These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated. And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father's nakedness.
So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him. Then he said: "Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brethren." And he said: "Blessed be the Lord, The God of Shem, And may Canaan be his servant. May God enlarge Japheth, And may he dwell in the tents of Shem; And may Canaan be his servant."
And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years; and he died.
Now the sons of Noah were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And sons were born to them after the flood.
Priest: Wisdom!
Reader: The Prokeimenon in the 4th Tone: It is good for me to be near my God.
People: It is good for me to be near my God.
Reader: Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.
People: It is good for me to be near my God.
Reader: It is good for me.
People: To be near my God.
The priest comes forth with the candle and censer.
All make a prostration or kneel.
Priest: Wisdom! Let us attend!
The Light of Christ illumines all!
Reader: The Reading is from Proverbs.
Priest: Let us attend!
Proverbs 12:23-13:9
Reader: A prudent man conceals knowledge, But the heart of fools proclaims foolishness.
The hand of the diligent will rule, But the lazy man will be put to forced labor.
Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.
The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray.
The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting, But diligence is man's precious possession.
In the way of righteousness is life, And in its pathway there is no death.
A wise son heeds his father's instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, But the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence.
He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.
The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.
A righteous man hates lying, But a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless, But wickedness overthrows the sinner.
There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
The ransom o/span style=f a man's life is his riches, But the poor does not hear rebuke.
The light of the righteous rejoices, But the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
Priest: Peace be unto you. Wisdom!
Let My Prayer Arise follows
This content has been generously provided by Fr. Jerome Cwiklinski, CAPT, CHC, USN