Orthodox Daily Readings

Old Testament: Composite 6 - Exodus 12, 13; Numbers 8; Leviticus 12

Vespers, 1st reading

1 The Lord spoke to Moses in that very day on which He led the children of Israel out from the land of Egypt saying: “Sanctify to Me all the first-born, the first-produced opening the womb among the children of Israel.” And Moses went and gathered all the people and said: “Remember this day, in which you came out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, for with a strong hand the Lord led you out from thence; and you shall keep His law. And it shall come to pass when the Lord your God shall bring you into the land of the Canaanites, as He swore to your fathers: you shall set apart all the first-born, whatever opens the womb, the males for the Lord.

2 And it shall come to pass that if you son asks you, saying, “What is this?” you shall say to him: “By the strength of hand the Lord led you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. For when Pharoah hardened his heart, so as not to let us go, the Lord slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of man and the first-born of cattle. Therefore, I bring a sacrifice to the Lord: every male that opens the womb; but all the first-born of my sons I will redeem.”

3 And it shall be a sign, set firmly before your eyes. For thus says the Lord God Almighty: “The first-born of your sons you shall give to Me. And it shall be that a woman who bears a male child, on the eighth day shall circumcise the flesh of his foreskin. Then for thirty-three days she shall not enter the sanctuary of God until the days of purification are fulfilled.

4 “And after this she shall bring to the Lord an unblemished lamb one year old, as a whole-burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove, to the doors of the tent of witness, to the priest. Or, instead of these she shall bring before the Lord two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and the priest shall pray for her.

5 “For these are given to Me as a recompense from all the sons of Israel, and I have taken them and consecrated them for Myself, instead of the first-born of the Egyptians, in the day in which I slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, of both man and cattle.” Thus saith God Most High, the Holy One of Israel.

Old Testament: Isaiah 6:1-12

Vespers, 2nd reading

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.

2 Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

3 And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”

4 And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.

5 So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.

7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.”

8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

9 And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

10 “Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.”

11 Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered: “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, the houses are without a man, the land is utterly desolate,

12 The Lord has removed men far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

Old Testament: Composite 7 - Isaiah 19:1, 3, 4-5, 12, 16, 19-21

Vespers, 3rd reading

1 Behold, the Lord sits on a light cloud, and shall come to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt will tremble at His presence, and their hearts shall faint within them. And their spirit shall be troubled within them, and He will frustrate their counsel. He will deliver Egypt into the hands of cruel lords – Thus saith the Lord, the holy Lord of Hosts! And the Egyptians shall drink the water that is by the sea, but will fail and be dried up.

2 Thus saith the Lord: Where now are your wise men? Let them tell you and make known what the Lord of Hosts has purposed against Egypt. In that day the Egyptians will be in fear and trembling because of the hand of the Lord of Hosts which He shall lay upon them. And there shall be an altar to the Lord in the land of the Egyptians, and a pillar to the Lord at its border. And it shall be a sign to the Lord of Hosts forever in the land of the Egyptians; for they shall cry to the Lord and the Lord shall send to them a man who shall save them. And the Lord will make Himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and they shall offer sacrifices and gifts, and shall pray, and they make their vows to the Lord.

Epistle: 2 Peter 1:20-2:9

20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,

21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

1 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.

2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.

3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.

4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;

5 and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;

6 and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;

7 and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked

8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) –

9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,

Epistle: Hebrews 7:7-17

Epistle, Meeting

7 Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better.

8 Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives.

9 Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak,

10 for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.

11 Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron

12 For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.

13 For He of whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar.

14 For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood.

15 And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest

16 who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.

17 For He testifies: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”

Gospel: Luke 2:25-32

Matins Gospel

25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law,

28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:

29 “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word;

30 for my eyes have seen Your salvation

31 which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,

32 a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.”

Gospel: Mark 13:9-13

9 But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.

10 And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations.

11 But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

12 Now brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.

13 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Gospel: Luke 2:22-40

Gospel, Meeting

22 Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord

23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the LORD”),

24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”

25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law,

28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:

29 “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word;

30 for my eyes have seen Your salvation

31 which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,

32 a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.”

33 And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.

34 Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against

35 (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity;

37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.

38 And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.

39 So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth.

40 And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.

Commemorated on this day

The Meeting of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, in the Temple .