Isaiah 40:18-31

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁸ To whom then will you liken God,
    or what likeness compare with him?
¹⁹ The idol! a workman casts it,
    and a goldsmith overlays it with gold,
    and casts for it silver chains.
²⁰ He who is impoverished^[a] chooses for an offering
    wood that will not rot;
he seeks out a skilful craftsman
    to set up an image that will not move.

²¹ Have you not known? Have you not heard?
    Has it not been told you from the beginning?
    Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
²² It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
    and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
    and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
²³ who brings princes to nought,
    and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.

²⁴ Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
    scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows upon them, and they wither,
    and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

²⁵ To whom then will you compare me,
    that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
²⁶ Lift up your eyes on high and see:
    who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
    calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might,
    and because he is strong in power
    not one is missing.

²⁷ Why do you say, O Jacob,
    and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hid from the Lord,
    and my right is disregarded by my God”?
²⁸ Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary,
    his understanding is unsearchable.
²⁹ He gives power to the faint,
    and to him who has no might he increases strength.
³⁰ Even youths shall faint and be weary,
    and young men shall fall exhausted;
³¹ but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
    they shall walk and not faint.

Genesis 15:1-15

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

God’s Covenant with Abram

15 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”^[a] 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what wilt thou give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Elie′zer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “Behold, thou hast given me no offspring; and a slave born in my house will be my heir.” ⁴ And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; your own son shall be your heir.” ⁵ And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” ⁶ And he believed the Lord; and he reckoned it to him as righteousness.

⁷ And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chalde′ans, to give you this land to possess.” ⁸ But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” ⁹ He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a she-goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” ¹⁰ And he brought him all these, cut them in two, and laid each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. ¹¹ And when birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

¹² As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram; and lo, a dread and great darkness fell upon him. ¹³ Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know of a surety that your descendants will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, and will be slaves there, and they will be oppressed for four hundred years; ¹⁴ but I will bring judgment on the nation which they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. ¹⁵ As for yourself, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age.

 

 

16 The holy martyrs Sabinus and Papas in Egypt, martyrs, who suffered many things and finally died after being thrown into a river in the persecution of Diocletian. (287)

 

 

Isaiah 37:33-38:6

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

³³ “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come into this city, or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield, or cast up a siege mound against it. ³⁴ By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, says the Lord. ³⁵ For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.”

Sennacherib’s Defeat and Death

³⁶ And the angel of the Lord went forth, and slew a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. ³⁷ Then Sennach′erib king of Assyria departed, and went home and dwelt at Nin′eveh. ³⁸ And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adram′melech and Share′zer, his sons, slew him with the sword, and escaped into the land of Ar′arat. And E′sar-had′don his son reigned in his stead.

Hezekiah’s Illness

38 In those days Hezeki′ah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order; for you shall die, you shall not recover.” ² Then Hezeki′ah turned his face to the wall, and prayed to the Lord, ³ and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in thy sight.” And Hezeki′ah wept bitterly. ⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: ⁵ “Go and say to Hezeki′ah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life. ⁶ I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and defend this city.

Genesis 13:12-18

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹² Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, while Lot dwelt among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom. ¹³ Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.

¹⁴ The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; ¹⁵ for all the land which you see I will give to you and to your descendants for ever. ¹⁶ I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your descendants also can be counted. ¹⁷ Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” ¹⁸ So Abram moved his tent, and came and dwelt by the oaks^[a] of Mamre, which are at Hebron; and there he built an altar to the Lord.

Proverbs 14:27-15:4

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²⁷ The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
    that one may avoid the snares of death.
²⁸ In a multitude of people is the glory of a king,
    but without people a prince is ruined.
²⁹ He who is slow to anger has great understanding,
    but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.
³⁰ A tranquil mind gives life to the flesh,
    but passion makes the bones rot.
³¹ He who oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,
    but he who is kind to the needy honors him.
³² The wicked is overthrown through his evil-doing,
    but the righteous finds refuge through his integrity.^[a]
33 Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding,
    but it is not^[b] known in the heart of fools.
³⁴ Righteousness exalts a nation,
    but sin is a reproach to any people.
³⁵ A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor,
    but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.
15 A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
² The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge,^[c]
    but the mouths of fools pour out folly.
³ The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
    keeping watch on the evil and the good.
⁴ A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
    but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

 

 

15 The holy martyr Agapius and his companions. The holy martyrs Timolaus, Dionysius, Pausis, Romulus, Alexander, and another Alexander at Caesarea in Palestine, who were led with bound hands to Urbanus the prefect in the persecution of Diocletian the emperor and confessed that they were Christians. A few days later, with their companions Agapius and another Dionysius, they were beheaded and earned the crowns of eternal life. (303)

 

Hebrews 6:13-20

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

The Certainty of God’s Promise

¹³ For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, ¹⁴ saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” ¹⁵ And thus Abraham,^[a] having patiently endured, obtained the promise. ¹⁶ Men indeed swear by a greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. ¹⁷ So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he interposed with an oath, ¹⁸ so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God should prove false, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us. ¹⁹ We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner shrine behind the curtain, ²⁰ where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest for ever after the order of Melchiz′edek.

Ephesians 5:9-19

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁹ (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), ¹⁰ and try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. ¹¹ Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. ¹² For it is a shame even to speak of the things that they do in secret; ¹³ but when anything is exposed by the light it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. ¹⁴ Therefore it is said,

“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead,
and Christ shall give you light.”^[a]

¹⁵ Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. ¹⁸ And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, ¹⁹ addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart,

Mark 9:17-31

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁷ And one of the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit; ¹⁸ and wherever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ And they brought the boy to him; and when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And Jesus^[a] asked his father, “How long has he had this?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you can do anything, have pity on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, “If you can! All things are possible to him who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out^[b] and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. ²⁸ And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.”^[c]

Jesus Again Foretells His Death and Resurrection

³⁰ They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he would not have any one know it; ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise.”

Matthew 4:25-5:12

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²⁵ And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap′olis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.

The Beatitudes

5 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him. ² And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you.

 

14 Our venerable father Benedict. Born in Nursia and educated in Rome, he began a hermit’s life. He gathered many disciples around himself, and then went to Monte Casino. There he founded his celebrated monastery and composed a rule for monks. This rule spread so widely that he has deserved to be called the patriarch of monks in the West. It is said that he died on the twenty-first day of March. (550)

 

 

Hebrews 6:9-12

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁹ Though we speak thus, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things that belong to salvation. ¹⁰ For God is not so unjust as to overlook your work and the love which you showed for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do. ¹¹ And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness in realizing the full assurance of hope until the end, ¹² so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

1 Corinthians 15:47-57

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁴⁷ The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. ⁴⁸ As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. ⁴⁹ Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall^[a] also bear the image of the man of heaven. ⁵⁰ I tell you this, brethren: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

⁵¹ Lo! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, ⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. ⁵³ For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable, and this mortal nature must put on immortality. ⁵⁴ When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
⁵⁵ “O death, where is thy victory?
O death, where is thy sting?”

⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Mark 7:31-37

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

Jesus Cures a Deaf Man

³¹ Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of the Decap′olis. ³² And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech; and they besought him to lay his hand upon him. ³³ And taking him aside from the multitude privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue; ³⁴ and looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said to him, “Eph′phatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ³⁵ And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ And he charged them to tell no one; but the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷ And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well; he even makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.”

John 5:24-30

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²⁴ Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

²⁵ “Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. ²⁶ For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, ²⁷ and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man. ²⁸ Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice ²⁹ and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.

Witnesses to Jesus

³⁰ “I can do nothing on my own authority; as I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

 

13 The translation of the relics of our holy father Nicephor, patriarch of Constantinople. Nicephor died in exile on the island of Prochonis in the year 827. After the death of the last iconoclast emperor, the relics of the holy father were brought back to Constantinople, first to the church of Hagia Sophia and then finally to the Church of the Holy Apostles in the year 846.

 

Isaiah 29:13-23

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹³ And the Lord said:
“Because this people draw near with their mouth
    and honor me with their lips,
    while their hearts are far from me,
and their fear of me is a commandment of men learned by rote;
¹⁴ therefore, behold, I will again
    do marvelous things with this people,
    wonderful and marvelous;
and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
    and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hid.”

¹⁵ Woe to those who hide deep from the Lord their counsel,
    whose deeds are in the dark,
    and who say, “Who sees us? Who knows us?”
¹⁶ You turn things upside down!
    Shall the potter be regarded as the clay;
that the thing made should say of its maker,
    “He did not make me”;
or the thing formed say of him who formed it,
    “He has no understanding”?

Hope for the Future

¹⁷ Is it not yet a very little while
    until Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,
    and the fruitful field shall be regarded as a forest?
¹⁸ In that day the deaf shall hear
    the words of a book,
and out of their gloom and darkness
    the eyes of the blind shall see.
¹⁹ The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord,
    and the poor among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
²⁰ For the ruthless shall come to nought and the scoffer cease,
    and all who watch to do evil shall be cut off,
²¹ who by a word make a man out to be an offender,
    and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate,
    and with an empty plea turn aside him who is in the right.

²² Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:

“Jacob shall no more be ashamed,
    no more shall his face grow pale.
²³ For when he sees his children,
    the work of my hands, in his midst,
    they will sanctify my name;
they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,
    and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.

Genesis 12:1-7

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

The Call of Abram

12 ^[a]Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. ² And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. ³ I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse; and by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves.”^[b]

⁴ So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. ⁵ And Abram took Sar′ai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions which they had gathered, and the persons that they had gotten in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had come to the land of Canaan, ⁶ Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak^[c] of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. ⁷ Then the Lord appeared to Abram, and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

Proverbs 14:15-26

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁵ The simple believes everything,
    but the prudent looks where he is going.
¹⁶ A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil,
    but a fool throws off restraint and is careless.
¹⁷ A man of quick temper acts foolishly,
    but a man of discretion is patient.^[a]
18 The simple acquire folly,
    but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
¹⁹ The evil bow down before the good,
    the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
²⁰ The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,
    but the rich has many friends.
²¹ He who despises his neighbor is a sinner,
    but happy is he who is kind to the poor.
²² Do they not err that devise evil?
    Those who devise good meet loyalty and faithfulness.
²³ In all toil there is profit,
    but mere talk tends only to want.
²⁴ The crown of the wise is their wisdom,^[b]
    but folly is the garland^[c] of fools.
²⁵ A truthful witness saves lives,
    but one who utters lies is a betrayer.
²⁶ In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,
    and his children will have a refuge.

 

 

12 Our venerable father and confessor Theophane of the Sygrian Mountain in Bithynia in the monastery of Ager Magnus. He was called the Chronographer. Having been a very wealthy man, he became a poor monk. He was held in prison for two years by the emperor Leo the Armenian on account of his defense of the cult of holy icons. From there he was deported to Samothrace, where, consumed by his tribulations, he yielded up his spirit. (817)

Our holy father Gregory, pope of Rome. After having entered the monastic life, he performed the duty of ambassador to Constantinople. Then, on the third of September, he was chosen for the Roman See. He dealt well with earthly matters and, as a servant of the servants of God, he attended to holy things. He showed that he was a true pastor in directing affairs, in fully assisting the needy, in fostering the monastic life, and everywhere in strengthening or extending the faith. He also wrote excellently on many things concerning moral and pastoral matters. (604)

 

Isaiah 28:14-22

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁴ Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scoffers,
    who rule this people in Jerusalem!
¹⁵ Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
    and with Sheol we have an agreement;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through
    it will not come to us;
for we have made lies our refuge,
    and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;
¹⁶ therefore thus says the Lord God,
“Behold, I am laying in Zion for a foundation
    a stone, a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation:
    ‘He who believes will not be in haste.’
¹⁷ And I will make justice the line,
    and righteousness the plummet;
and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,
    and waters will overwhelm the shelter.”
¹⁸ Then your covenant with death will be annulled,
    and your agreement with Sheol will not stand;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through
    you will be beaten down by it.
¹⁹ As often as it passes through it will take you;
    for morning by morning it will pass through,
    by day and by night;
and it will be sheer terror to understand the message.
²⁰ For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on it,
    and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in it.
²¹ For the Lord will rise up as on Mount Pera′zim,
    he will be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon;
to do his deed—strange is his deed!
    and to work his work—alien is his work!
²² Now therefore do not scoff,
    lest your bonds be made strong;
for I have heard a decree of destruction
    from the Lord God of hosts upon the whole land.

Genesis 10:32-11:9

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

³² These are the families of the sons of Noah, according to their genealogies, in their nations; and from these the nations spread abroad on the earth after the flood.

The Tower of Babel

11 ^[a]Now the whole earth had one language and few words. ² And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. ³ And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. ⁴ Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” ⁵ And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. ⁶ And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. ⁷ Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” ⁸ So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. ⁹ Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused^[b] the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

Proverbs 13:19-14:6

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁹ A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul;
    but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.
²⁰ He who walks with wise men becomes wise,
    but the companion of fools will suffer harm.
²¹ Misfortune pursues sinners,
    but prosperity rewards the righteous.
²² A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
    but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.
²³ The fallow ground of the poor yields much food,
    but it is swept away through injustice.
²⁴ He who spares the rod hates his son,
    but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.
²⁵ The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,
    but the belly of the wicked suffers want.
14 Wisdom^[a] builds her house,
but folly with her own hands tears it down.
² He who walks in uprightness fears the Lord,
    but he who is devious in his ways despises him.
³ The talk of a fool is a rod for his back,^[b]
    but the lips of the wise will preserve them.
⁴ Where there are no oxen, there is no^[c] grain;
    but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.
⁵ A faithful witness does not lie,
    but a false witness breathes out lies.
⁶ A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,
    but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.

 

11 Our holy father Sophronius, patriarch of Jerusalem. He was elected patriarch of the see after Modestus. When the Holy City fell into the hands of the Saracens, he defended with vigor the faith and the safety of the people. (644)

 

 

Isaiah 26:21-27:9

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²¹ For behold, the Lord is coming forth out of his place
    to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity,
and the earth will disclose the blood shed upon her,
    and will no more cover her slain.

Israel’s Redemption

27 In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Levi′athan the fleeing serpent, Levi′athan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea.

² In that day:
“A pleasant vineyard, sing of it!
³     I, the Lord, am its keeper;
    every moment I water it.
Lest any one harm it,
    I guard it night and day;
⁴     I have no wrath.
Would that I had thorns and briers to battle!
    I would set out against them,
    I would burn them up together.
⁵ Or let them lay hold of my protection,
    let them make peace with me,
    let them make peace with me.”

⁶ In days to come^[a] Jacob shall take root,
    Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots,
    and fill the whole world with fruit.

⁷ Has he smitten them as he smote those who smote them?
    Or have they been slain as their slayers were slain?
⁸ Measure by measure,^[b] by exile thou didst contend with them;
    he removed them with his fierce blast in the day of the east wind.
⁹ Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be expiated,
    and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin:
when he makes all the stones of the altars
    like chalkstones crushed to pieces,
    no Ashe′rim or incense altars will remain standing.

Genesis 9:18-10:1

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

Noah and His Sons

¹⁸ The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. ¹⁹ These three were the sons of Noah; and from these the whole earth was peopled.

²⁰ Noah was the first tiller of the soil. He planted a vineyard; ²¹ and he drank of the wine, and became drunk, and lay uncovered in his tent. ²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. ²³ Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it upon both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness. ²⁴ When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him, ²⁵ he said,

“Cursed be Canaan;
    a slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”

²⁶ He also said,

“Blessed by the Lord my God be Shem;^[a]
    and let Canaan be his slave.
²⁷ God enlarge Japheth,
    and let him dwell in the tents of Shem;
    and let Canaan be his slave.”

²⁸ After the flood Noah lived three hundred and fifty years. ²⁹ All the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years; and he died.

Nations Descended from Noah

10 These are the generations^[b] of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth; sons were born to them after the flood.

Proverbs 12:23-13:10

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²³ A prudent man conceals his knowledge,
    but fools^[a] proclaim their folly.
²⁴ The hand of the diligent will rule,
    while the slothful will be put to forced labor.
²⁵ Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down,
    but a good word makes him glad.
²⁶ A righteous man turns away from evil,^[b]
    but the way of the wicked leads them astray.
²⁷ A slothful man will not catch his prey,^[c]
    but the diligent man will get precious wealth.^[d]
28 In the path of righteousness is life,
    but the way of error leads to death.^[e]
13 A wise son hears his father’s instruction,
    but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
² From the fruit of his mouth a good man eats good,
    but the desire of the treacherous is for violence.
³ He who guards his mouth preserves his life;
    he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.
⁴ The soul of the sluggard craves, and gets nothing,
    while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.
⁵ A righteous man hates falsehood,
    but a wicked man acts shamefully and disgracefully.
⁶ Righteousness guards him whose way is upright,
    but sin overthrows the wicked.
⁷ One man pretends to be rich, yet has nothing;
    another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.
⁸ The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth,
    but a poor man has no means of redemption.^[f]
9 The light of the righteous rejoices,
    but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
¹⁰ By insolence the heedless make strife,
    but with those who take advice is wisdom.

 

 

10 The holy martyr Codratus and his companions Emmanuel, Sabine, and Theodosius in Anatolia. (250)

 

 

Isaiah 25:1-9

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

Praise for Deliverance from Oppression

25 O Lord, thou art my God;
I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name;
for thou hast done wonderful things,
    plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
² For thou hast made the city a heap,
    the fortified city a ruin;
the palace of aliens is a city no more,
    it will never be rebuilt.
³ Therefore strong peoples will glorify thee;
    cities of ruthless nations will fear thee.
⁴ For thou hast been a stronghold to the poor,
    a stronghold to the needy in his distress,
    a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat;
for the blast of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,
⁵     like heat in a dry place.
Thou dost subdue the noise of the aliens;
    as heat by the shade of a cloud,
    so the song of the ruthless is stilled.

⁶ On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of fat things, a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wine on the lees well refined. ⁷ And he will destroy on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. ⁸ He will swallow up death for ever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth; for the Lord has spoken.

⁹ It will be said on that day, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

Genesis 9:8-17

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁸ Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, ⁹ “Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your descendants after you, ¹⁰ and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark.^[a] 11 I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” ¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: ¹³ I set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. ¹⁶ When the bow is in the clouds, I will look upon it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.” ¹⁷ God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.”

Proverbs 12:8-22

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁸ A man is commended according to his good sense,
    but one of perverse mind is despised.
⁹ Better is a man of humble standing who works for himself
    than one who plays the great man but lacks bread.
¹⁰ A righteous man has regard for the life of his beast,
    but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.
¹¹ He who tills his land will have plenty of bread,
    but he who follows worthless pursuits has no sense.
¹² The strong tower of the wicked comes to ruin,
    but the root of the righteous stands firm.^[a]
13 An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips,
    but the righteous escapes from trouble.
¹⁴ From the fruit of his words a man is satisfied with good,
    and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.
¹⁵ The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
    but a wise man listens to advice.
¹⁶ The vexation of a fool is known at once,
    but the prudent man ignores an insult.
¹⁷ He who speaks the truth gives honest evidence,
    but a false witness utters deceit.
¹⁸ There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts,
    but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
¹⁹ Truthful lips endure for ever,
    but a lying tongue is but for a moment.
²⁰ Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil,
    but those who plan good have joy.
²¹ No ill befalls the righteous,
    but the wicked are filled with trouble.
²² Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,
    but those who act faithfully are his delight.

Matthew 20:1-16

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

The Laborers in the Vineyard

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius^[a] a day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place; ⁴ and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. ⁵ Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. ⁶ And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing; and he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ ⁷ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ ⁸ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ ⁹ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. ¹⁰ Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. ¹¹ And on receiving it they grumbled at the householder, ¹² saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ ¹³ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take what belongs to you, and go; I choose to give to this last as I give to you. ¹⁵ Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’^[b] 16 So the last will be first, and the first last.”

 

9 The forty holy martyrs of Sebaste in Armenia. Readings at Vespers. Polyeleos at Matins. They were comrades, neither in blood nor nationality, but in faith and obedience to the will of their heavenly Father. At the time of the emperor Licinius, after binding and savage tortures, they were ordered to pass the night naked at the coldest time of winter in a swamp in the open air. They consummated their martyrdom by the breaking of their legs and by being made a burnt offering. (320) Major Feast in Melkite tradition.

Mitigation for wine and oil.

 

Isaiah 14:24-32

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

An Oracle concerning Assyria

²⁴ The Lord of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned,
    so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
    so shall it stand,
²⁵ that I will break the Assyrian in my land,
    and upon my mountains trample him under foot;
and his yoke shall depart from them,
    and his burden from their shoulder.”
²⁶ This is the purpose that is purposed
    concerning the whole earth;
and this is the hand that is stretched out
    over all the nations.
²⁷ For the Lord of hosts has purposed,
    and who will annul it?
His hand is stretched out,
    and who will turn it back?

An Oracle concerning Philistia

²⁸ In the year that King Ahaz died came this oracle:

²⁹ “Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of you,
    that the rod which smote you is broken,
for from the serpent’s root will come forth an adder,
    and its fruit will be a flying serpent.
³⁰ And the first-born of the poor will feed,
    and the needy lie down in safety;
but I will kill your root with famine,
    and your remnant I^[a] will slay.
³¹ Wail, O gate; cry, O city;
    melt in fear, O Philistia, all of you!
For smoke comes out of the north,
    and there is no straggler in his ranks.”

³² What will one answer the messengers of the nation?
“The Lord has founded Zion,
    and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge.”

Genesis 8:21-9:7

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

²¹ And when the Lord smelled the pleasing odor, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I ever again destroy every living creature as I have done. ²² While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”

The Covenant With Noah

9 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. ² The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air, upon everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea; into your hand they are delivered. ³ Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; and as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything. ⁴ Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. ⁵ For your lifeblood I will surely require a reckoning; of every beast I will require it and of man; of every man’s brother I will require the life of man. ⁶ Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for God made man in his own image. ⁷ And you, be fruitful and multiply, bring forth abundantly on the earth and multiply in it.”

Proverbs 11:19-12:6

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

¹⁹ He who is steadfast in righteousness will live,
    but he who pursues evil will die.
²⁰ Men of perverse mind are an abomination to the Lord,
    but those of blameless ways are his delight.
²¹ Be assured, an evil man will not go unpunished,
    but those who are righteous will be delivered.
²² Like a gold ring in a swine’s snout
    is a beautiful woman without discretion.
²³ The desire of the righteous ends only in good;
    the expectation of the wicked in wrath.
²⁴ One man gives freely, yet grows all the richer;
    another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.
²⁵ A liberal man will be enriched,
    and one who waters will himself be watered.
²⁶ The people curse him who holds back grain,
    but a blessing is on the head of him who sells it.
²⁷ He who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
    but evil comes to him who searches for it.
²⁸ He who trusts in his riches will wither,^[a]
    but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
²⁹ He who troubles his household will inherit wind,
    and the fool will be servant to the wise.
³⁰ The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
    but lawlessness^[b] takes away lives.
³¹ If the righteous is requited on earth,
    how much more the wicked and the sinner!
12 Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,
    but he who hates reproof is stupid.
² A good man obtains favor from the Lord,
    but a man of evil devices he condemns.
³ A man is not established by wickedness,
    but the root of the righteous will never be moved.
⁴ A good wife is the crown of her husband,
    but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.
⁵ The thoughts of the righteous are just;
    the counsels of the wicked are treacherous.
⁶ The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,
    but the mouth of the upright delivers men.

 

 

8 Our venerable father and confessor Theophylact of Nicomedia in Bythinia, who was exiled for the sake of the cult of the holy icons and died at Strobilis in Caria. (845) 28