The Annunciation of our Most Holy Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary



Readings
according to the use of the Orthodox Church



Forefeast of the Annunciation


Kontakion
You are the beginning of salvation for all of us on earth, Virgin Mother of God.
For the great Archangel Gabriel, God's minister, was sent from heaven to stand before you to bring you joy:
Therefore, we all cry to you: Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.

Troparion
Today is the prelude of joy for the universe!
Let us anticipate the feast and celebrate with exultation:
Gabriel is on his way to announce the glad tidings to the Virgin;
He is ready to cry out in fear and wonder:
Rejoice, O Full of Grace, the Lord is with You!


Vespers, 3rd Reading
Genesis 28:10-17  

Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran.  So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.  Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.  And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.  Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.  “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”  

Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”  And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”


Vespers, 4th Reading
Ezekiel 43:27-44:4  

‘When these days are over it shall be, on the eighth day and thereafter, that the priests shall offer your burnt offerings and your peace offerings on the altar; and I will accept you,’ says the Lord God.”  Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary which faces toward the east, but it was shut.

And the Lord said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the Lord God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut.  “As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.”  Also He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple; so I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord; and I fell on my face.


Vespers, 5th Reading
Proverbs 9:1-11  

Wisdom has built her house,
She has hewn out her seven pillars;  
She has slaughtered her meat,
She has mixed her wine,
She has also furnished her table.  
She has sent out her maidens,
She cries out from the highest places of the city,  
“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
As for him who lacks understanding, she says to him,  
“Come, eat of my bread
And drink of the wine I have mixed.  
Forsake foolishness and live,
And go in the way of understanding.  
“He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself,
And he who rebukes a wicked man only harms himself.  
Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you;  
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;
Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.  
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.  
For by me your days will be multiplied,
And years of life will be added to you.




The Annunciation of our Most Holy Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary

Kontakion
O Victorious Leader of Triumphant Hosts!
We, your servants, delivered from evil, sing our grateful thanks to you, O Theotokos!
As you possess invincible might, set us free from every calamity
So that we may sing: Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!

Troparion
Today is the beginning of our salvation,
The revelation of the eternal mystery!
The Son of God becomes the Son of the Virgin
As Gabriel announces the coming of Grace.
Together with him let us cry to the Theotokos:
Rejoice, O Full of Grace,
The Lord is with You!


Matins Gospel
Luke 1:39-49,56  

Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,  and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.  And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!  But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?  For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.  Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.  

And Mary said:

"My soul magnifies the Lord,  
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.  
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.  
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name.  

And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.


Vespers, 3rd Reading
Exodus 3:1-8

Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.  And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.  Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.”  

So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”  Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”  Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.  And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.  So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites.


Vespers, 4th Reading
Proverbs 8:22-30  

“The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way,
Before His works of old.  
I have been established from everlasting,
From the beginning, before there was ever an earth.  
When there were no depths I was brought forth,
When there wer
e no fountains abounding with water.  
Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills, I was brought forth;
While as yet He had not made the earth or the fields,
Or the primal dust of the world.  
When He prepared the heavens, I was there,
When He drew a circle on the face of the deep,  
When He established the clouds above,
When He strengthened the fountains of the deep,  
When He assigned to the sea its limit,
So that the waters would not transgress His command,
When He marked out the foundations of the earth,  
Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman;
And I was daily His delight,
Rejoicing always before Him.


Epistle
Hebrews 2:11-18  

For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying:
  "I will declare Your name to My brethren;
  In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You."  
And again:
  "I will put My trust in Him."
And again:
  "Here am I and the children whom God has given Me."  
Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,  and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.  For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.  Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.  For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.


Gospel
Luke 1:24-38  

Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying,  "Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people."  

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.  And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"  But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.  Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.  

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.  He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.  And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.  Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"  And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.  Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.  For with God nothing will be impossible.  

Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.



 
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