Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Tuesday of the Thirty-Third Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the First General Epistle of Saint Peter [§ 60]. Beloved:

3 ¹⁰“The one who doth wish to love life and to see good days, let him stop his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile [cf. Ps. 33(34):12, 13]. ¹¹“Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it [cf. Ps. 33(34):14]. ¹²“For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are toward their entreaty; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil [Ps. 33(34):15, 16].” ¹³And who is the one who will ill-treat you if ye should become imitators of that which is good? ¹⁴But even if ye should suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye. “And be not afraid of their fear, neither be troubled [cf. Is. 8:12].” ¹⁵But “sanctify the Lord [Is. 8:13]” God in your hearts, and be ready always to give a defense to everyone who asketh you a reason concerning the hope in you, with meekness and fear, ¹⁶having a good conscience, that while they may speak against you as evildoers, those who speak disparagingly of your good manner of life in Christ might be put to shame. ¹⁷For it is better, if the will of God should so will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. ¹⁸For Christ also once for all suffered for sins—the just One for the unjust ones—that He might bring us up to God, after He indeed was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit, ¹⁹in Whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, ²⁰who once were disobedient, when the long-suffering of God was waiting in the days of Noah, while an ark was being constructed, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved by means of water. ²¹There is also an antitype which now saveth us—baptism (not a putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the examination of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, ²²Who went into heaven and is at the right of God, and angels and authorities and powers have been made subject to Him.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Mark [§ 50]. At that time:

11 ¹¹Jesus entered into Jerusalem and into the temple. And after He looked about for Himself at all things, as it was already the evening hour, He went out to Bethany with the twelve.

¹²And on the morrow, after they came out from Bethany, He hungered. ¹³And having seen from afar a fig tree having leaves, He came, if perhaps He might find something on it. And after He came to it, He found nothing except leaves; for it was not the season of figs. ¹⁴And Jesus began to speak and said to it, “May no one any more eat fruit of thee forever.” And His disciples were listening. ¹⁵And they came to Jerusalem. And having entered into the temple, Jesus began to cast out those who sold and bought in the temple. And He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold the doves. ¹⁶And He did not permit that anyone should carry a vessel through the temple. ¹⁷And He was teaching, saying to them, “It hath been written, hath it not, that ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations [Is. 56:7]’? But ye made it ‘a den of robbers [cf. Jer. 7:11].’” ¹⁸And the scribes and the Pharisees and the chief priests heard it, and they sought how they might destroy Him; for they were fearing Him, because all the crowd was astonished at His teaching. ¹⁹And when it came to be evening, He went forth out of the city. ²⁰And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. ²¹And Peter, having remembered, saith to Him, “Rabbi, behold, the fig tree which Thou cursedst hath been withered.” ²²And Jesus answered, saying to them, “Be having faith in God. ²³“For verily I say to you, that whosoever shall say to this mountain, ‘Be thou taken away and be thou cast into the sea,’ and doubt not in his heart, but shall believe that what he saith is coming to pass, it shall be to him whatsoever he shall say.”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the Afterfeast of Nativity, and the Synaxis of our most holy Lady the Theotokos, and Hieromartyr Efthymios, Bishop of Sardis.

Epistle

The Reading is from the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Hebrews [§ 306]. Brethren:

2 ¹¹Both He Who sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one; for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren, ¹²saying, “I will announce Thy name to My brethren, in the midst of the church will I hymn Thee [cf. Ps. 21(22):22]”; ¹³and again, “I will trust in Him [cf. Is. 8:17]”; and again, “Behold, I and the children whom God gave Me [Is. 8:18].” ¹⁴Since then the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He also Himself in like manner partook of the same, in order that through death He might bring to nought the one who hath the power of death, that is, the devil, ¹⁵and might set free those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. ¹⁶For surely He taketh not hold of the nature of the angels, but He taketh hold of the seed of Abraham. ¹⁷Wherefore in all things it behooved Him to be made like His brethren, that He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, in order to be made an expiation for the sins of the people. ¹⁸For having Himself been tempted in that which He suffered, He is able to help those who are tempted.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 4].

2 ¹³After the Magi departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, and take the young Child and His Mother, and flee thou into Egypt, and be thou there until I should tell thee; for Herod is about to seek the young Child, to destroy Him.” ¹⁴And he arose and took the young Child and His Mother by night and departed into Egypt, ¹⁵and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled that which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son [cf. Hos. 11:1].” ¹⁶Then Herod, after he saw that he was mocked by the Magi, was angered exceedingly. And he sent forth and killed all the male children that were in Bethlehem and in all her borders, from two years old and under, according to the time which he inquired carefully from the Magi. ¹⁷Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying, ¹⁸“A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not [cf. Jer. 38(31):15].” ¹⁹But after Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, ²⁰saying, “Arise, and take the young Child and His Mother, and go into the land of Israel; for they who sought the soul of the young Child have died.” ²¹And he arose and took the young Child and His Mother, and came into the land of Israel. ²²But after he heard that Archelaus reigned over Judæa instead of Herod his father, he was afraid to go there. And having been divinely warned in a dream, he withdrew into the parts of Galilee. ²³And he came and dwelt in a city which is called Nazareth, in order that it might be fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophets, that He shall be called a Nazarene.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

January 8th – Civil Calendar
December 26th – Church Calendar

1. The Synaxis of the Most Holy Mother of God.

On the second day of Nativity, the Christian Church gives glory and praise to the most holy Mother of God, who bore our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ. This feast is called a ‘general commemoration’ because, on this day, all the faithful come together to glorify her, the Mother of God, and to celebrate a triumphant, common feast in her honor. In Ochrid, it has been the custom from time immemorial that, on the eve of the second day of Nativity, Vespers has been celebrated only in the church of the Mother of God, the Chieftain. All the clergy and people there together glorify the most pure Mother of God.

2. Commemoration of the Flight into Egypt.

The Magi, astrologers from the East, having worshipped the Lord in Bethlehem, returned home, at the command of an angel, another way. Herod, that wicked king, planned to slaughter all the children in Bethlehem, but God saw Herod’s intention and sent His angel to Joseph. The angel of God spoke to Joseph in a dream and commanded him to take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Joseph did this. Taking the divine Child and His most pure Mother, he traveled first to Nazareth (Lk. 2:39), where he set his household affairs in order and then, taking his son Iakovos with them, went off to Egypt (Matt. 2:14). And so the words of the prophet: ‘The Lord, riding upon a swift cloud, shall come into Egypt’ (Is. 19:1), were fulfilled. In old Cairo today the cave where the holy travelers lived can be seen, and in the village of Matarea near Cairo, the tree remains under which the Mother of God rested with the Lord Jesus, where a miraculous spring of water sprang up under the tree. They lived in Egypt for several years, and then the travelers returned to Palestine in response to a command by an angel of God. And so a second prophecy was fulfilled: ‘Out of Egypt have I called My Son’ (Hosea 11:1). Herod was dead, and on his bloodstained throne sat a worthy successor in his wicked son Archelaus. Joseph, hearing that Archelaus was reigning in Jerusalem, returned to Galilee, to his town of Nazareth, where he settled in his own home. Galilee was at that time ruled by another of Herod’s sons, Herod the Younger, who was somewhat better than his wicked brother Archelaus.

3. Our Holy Father Evarestos.

Reading the works of St. Ephraim the Syrian, he abandoned the diplomatic service and became a monk. He was very strict with himself and wore chains on his body, eating dry bread only once a week. He lived for seventy-five years, and went to the Lord in about 825.

4. St. Efthymios the Confessor, Bishop of Sardis.

He took part in the Seventh Ecumenical Council, and spent about thirty years in exile for his veneration of icons. Under the Emperor Theophilus the Iconoclast, he was flogged with bull-whips, during which he died a martyr in 840 and received a wreath of glory in heaven.

5. Our Holy Father Constantine of Synnada.

He was a Jew who came to the Christian Faith. When the Cross was made on his head at his Baptism, it remained visible there till his death in Constantinople in the seventh century. He is famed for his fasting and for his many miracles. He foretold the day of his death seven years in advance.

FOR CONSIDERATION

A story of the divine Christ-Child: When Mary and Joseph were fleeing before Herod’s sword to Egypt, brigands leapt out into the road to steal what they could. Righteous Joseph was leading the donkey on which were some few possessions and on which the most holy Mother of God was riding with her Son at her breast. The robbers seized the donkey, meaning to lead it away. At that moment, one of the robbers went across to the Mother of God to see what she had at her breast. Seeing the Christ-Child, the robber marveled at His beauty and said in wonder: ‘If God were to take human flesh Himself, He would not be more beautiful than this child!’ and the robber told his fellows to take nothing from these travelers. Full of gratitude to this kindly robber, the Mother of God said to him: ‘This Child will reward you richly for having spared Him today’. Thirty-three years later, this same robber was crucified for his wrongdoing on the right of Christ’s cross. His name was Dismas, while the name of the robber on the left was Gestas. Looking at Christ the Lord, crucified in His innocence, Dismas repented of his whole life, and while Gestas reviled the Lord, Dismas rebuked his fellow-robber, saying: ‘He has done no evil’. Dismas is, then, that penitent thief to whom the Lord said: ‘Today shalt thou be with Me in Paradise’ (Lk.23:41-43). Thus the Lord rewarded with Paradise him who had spared Him in childhood.

Daily Scripture Readings taken from The Orthodox New Testament, translated and published by Holy Apostles Convent, Buena Vista, Colorado, copyright © 2000, used with permission, all rights reserved.

Daily Prologue Readings taken from The Prologue of Ochrid, by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, translated by Mother Maria, published by Lazarica Press, Birmingham, England, copyright © 1985, all rights reserved. Edited by Dormition Skete.