Isaiah 37.33-38.6 (6th Hour)

33Zato ovako veli Gospod za cara Asirskoga: neæe uæi u ovaj grad, niti æe baciti amo strijele, neæe se primaæi k njemu sa štitom, niti æe iskopati opkopa oko njega. 34Vratiæe se putem kojim je došao, a u grad ovaj neæe uæi, veli Gospod. 35Jer æu braniti taj grad i saèuvaæu ga sebe radi i radi Davida sluge svojega. 36Tada izide anðeo Gospodnji i pobi u okolu Asirskom sto i osamdeset i pet tisuæa; i kad ustaše ujutru, a to sve sami mrtvaci. 37Te se podiže Senahirim car Asirski, i otide, i vrativši se osta u Nineviji. 38I kad se klanjaše u domu Nisroka boga svojega, Adrameleh i Sarasar sinovi njegovi ubiše ga maèem, a sami pobjegoše u zemlju Araratsku, i na njegovo se mjesto zacari Esaradon sin njegov.

1U to vrijeme razbolje se Jezekija na smrt; i doðe k njemu prorok Isaija sin Amosov i reèe mu: ovako veli Gospod: naredi za kuæu svoju, jer æeš umrijeti i neæeš ostati živ. 2A Jezekija se okrete licem k zidu, i pomoli se Gospodu, 3I reèe: oh, Gospode, opomeni se da sam jednako hodio pred tobom vjerno i s cijelijem srcem, i tvorio što je tebi ugodno. I plaka Jezekija veoma. 4Tada doðe rijeè Gospodnja Isaiji govoreæi: 5Idi i reci Jezekiji: ovako veli Gospod Bog Davida oca tvojega: èuo sam molitvu tvoju, i vidio sam suze tvoje, evo dodaæu ti vijeku petnaest godina. 6I izbaviæu tebe i ovaj grad iz ruku cara Asirskoga, i braniæu ovaj grad.

Genesis 13.12-18 (Vespers)

12Avram življaše u zemlji Hananskoj, a Lot življaše po gradovima u onoj ravnici premještajuæi svoje šatore do Sodoma. 13A ljudi u Sodomu bijahu nevaljali, i griješahu Gospodu veoma. 14A Gospod reèe Avramu, pošto se Lot odijeli od njega: podigni sada oèi svoje, pa pogledaj s mjesta gdje si na sjever i na jug i na istok i na zapad. 15Jer svu zemlju što vidiš tebi æu dati i sjemenu tvojemu dovijeka. 16I uèiniæu da sjemena tvojega bude kao praha na zemlji; ako ko uzmože izbrojiti prah na zemlji, moæi æe izbrojiti i sjeme tvoje. 17Ustani, i prolazi tu zemlju u dužinu i u širinu; jer æu je tebi dati. 18I Avram diže šatore, i doðe i naseli se u ravnici Mamrijskoj, koja je kod Hevrona, i ondje naèini žrtvenik Gospodu.

Proverbs 14.27-15.4 (Vespers)

27Strah je Gospodnji izvor životu da se èovjek saèuva od prugala smrtnijeh. 28U mnoštvu je naroda slava caru; a kad nestaje naroda, propast je vladaocu. 29Ko je spor na gnjev, velika je razuma; a ko je nagao pokazuje ludost. 30Život je tijelu srce zdravo, a zavist je trulež u kostima. 31Ko èini krivo ubogome, sramoti stvoritelja njegova; a poštuje ga ko je milostiv siromahu. 32Za zlo svoje povrgnuæe se bezbožnik, a pravednik nada se i na smrti. 33Mudrost poèiva u srcu razumna èovjeka, a što je u bezumnima poznaje se. 34Pravda podiže narod, a grijeh je sramota narodima. 35Mio je caru razuman sluga, ali na sramotna gnjevi se.

1Odgovor blag utišava gnjev, a rijeè prijeka podiže srdnju. 2Jezik mudrijeh ljudi ukrašava znanje, a usta bezumnijeh prosipaju bezumlje. 3Oèi su Gospodnje na svakom mjestu gledajuæi zle i dobre. 4Zdrav je jezik drvo životno, a opaèina s njega kršenje od vjetra.

St Isaac the Syrian, abbot of Spoleto, Italy (ca. 550)

This is not the famed Isaac of Syria (commemorated Jan 28) who wrote the Ascetical Homilies, but a monk who settled in Spoleto and was famed for his holy, solitary life, his miracles, and his discernment. The people of Spoleto sought to honor him with money and other gifts, but he refused everything and withdrew to a cell in the forest. Soon a large monastery grew up there as others joined him in his life of prayer.

Once, two nearly naked men came begging clothing from Isaac. He told a monk to go to a hollow tree some distance away, and to bring back what he found there. The monk returned with some clothing, and gave it to the beggars. They were shamed to find that it was their own clothing, which they had hidden in the tree.

A man gave two beehives to the monastery. A monk hid one of them and brought the other to the abbot. Isaac said to him, ‘Be careful when you go back to the beehive that you hid: it has been taken over by poisonous snakes. Be careful that they do not bite you.’

St Basil the Confessor, bishop of Parium (ca. 760)

In the dark days of iconoclasm, this holy bishop refused to sign the imperial order condemning the veneration of icons, and for this was cruelly persecuted in many ways by the heretics for the remainder of his life; all the while he remained ‘firm as a diamond in his Orthodoxy.’ (Prologue)

Our Holy Mother Athanasia (860)

“Born on the island of Aegina of rich and eminent parents, she gave her goods to the poor and went off to a monastery, where she heaped greater and greater asceticism on herself. She took food only once a day, and that only bread and water, and in the Great Fast only once every two days. Only at Christmas and Easter did she taste flesh and oil. Although she was abbess of the monastery, she was the servant of all the other sisters and was ashamed that any should wait on her. She was made worthy of the great gift of wonderworking, both during her lifetime and after her death.” (Prologue)