GREAT VESPERS FOR PENTECOST SUNDAY
If it is the custom, after the initial Amen, all kneel and sing in Tone 6:
Heavenly King, Advocate, Spirit of Truth,* who are everywhere present and fill all things,* Treasury of Blessings, Bestower of Life,* come, and dwell within us;* cleanse us of all that defiles us,* and O Good One, save our souls.
At Psalm 140
In Tone 1
10.
Behold, we celebrate today the Feast of Pentecost,
the descent of the Holy Spirit,
the fulfillment of the promise and the realization of hope.
How wonderful and awesome is this great mystery!
Therefore, O Lord and Creator of all,
we cry out: Glory to You!
9.
Behold, we celebrate today the Feast of Pentecost,
the descent of the Holy Spirit,
the fulfillment of the promise and the realization of hope.
How wonderful and awesome is this great mystery!
Therefore, O Lord and Creator of all,
we cry out: Glory to You!
8.
You renewed Your disciples, O Christ,
by giving them a variety of tongues
with which to proclaim that You are the Immortal God,
the Word who bestows great mercy upon our souls.
7.
The Holy Spirit provides every gift:
He inspires prophecy and perfects the priesthood;
He grants wisdom to the illiterate,
makes simple fishermen become wise theologians,
and establishes perfect order in the assembly of the Church.
Therefore, O Comforter, equal in nature and majesty with the Father and the Son,
O Lord, glory to You!
In Tone 2
6.
We have seen the true light;
we have received the heavenly Spirit;
we have found the true faith!
Worshipping the undivided Trinity
for it has saved us.
5.
We have seen the true light;
we have received the heavenly Spirit;
we have found the true faith!
Worshipping the undivided Trinity
for it has saved us.
4.
You have shown us, O Saviour,
the way to salvation through the Prophets;
and the grace of Your Holy Spirit
has shone upon us through the Apostles.
You are God from all eternity,
our God, now and forever.
3.
O Saviour of the world,
I sing a hymn of praise to You in Your temple;
on my knees, I adore Your invisible power,
at dawn and dusk and at noon;
indeed, at all times, I bless You, O Lord.
2.
We Your faithful people, O Lord,
prostrate our souls and bodies before You.
We sing a hymn of praise to You, the eternal Father;
and to Your Son, equal to You in eternity;
and to Your all holy Spirit, co-eternal with You,
the Enlightener and Sanctifier of our souls.
1.
Let us sing a hymn of praise to the consubstantial Trinity,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
for this is the command and teaching
of all the Prophets, Apostles, and Martyrs.
In Tone 8
Glory… Now…
Come, all you nations of the world,
let us adore God in three holy Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Three in One.
From all eternity, the Father begets the Son,
equal to Him in eternity and majesty,
equal also to the Holy Spirit,
glorified with the Son in the Father,
three Persons, and yet a single power and essence and Godhead.
In deep adoration, let us cry out to God:
Holy is God who made all things through the Son
with the cooperation of the Holy Spirit.
Holy the Mighty One through whom the Father was revealed to us,
and through whom the Holy Spirit came to the world!
Holy the Immortal One, the Spirit, the Counsellor,
who proceeds from the Father and reposes in the Son.
All-holy Trinity, glory to You!
Readings
Numbers 11:16-17, 24-29
Joel 2:23-3:5
Ezekiel 36:24-28
Lytia
In Tone 2
You have shown us, O Saviour,
the way to salvation through the Prophets;
and the grace of Your Holy Spirit has shone upon us through the Apostles.
You are God from all eternity,
our God, now and forever.
O Saviour of the world,
I sing a hymn of praise to You in Your temple;
on my knees, I adore Your invisible power,
at dawn and dusk and at noon;
indeed, at all times, I bless You, O Lord.
We Your faithful people, O Lord,
prostrate our souls and bodies before You.
We sing a hymn of praise to You, the eternal Father;
and to Your Son, equal to You in eternity;
and to Your all holy Spirit, co-eternal with You,
the Enlightener and Sanctifier of our souls.
In Tone 8
Glory… Now…
O Lord, when You sent down Your Spirit,
upon the assembled Apostles,
the children of Israel were struck with awe
as they heard them speak in many tongues,
inspired by the Holy Spirit.
They knew them to be illiterate and now saw them wise,
speaking divine truths and bringing Gentiles to the faith.
Therefore, we also cry out to You:
You have appeared on earth and saved us from error;
O Lord, glory to You!
Aposticha
In Tone 6
O Lord, the Gentiles were unaware of the power of the Holy Spirit
that had come down upon the Apostles;
they thought the many tongues were an effect of drunkenness.
But we who are strengthened by them cry our ceaselessly:
O Lover of Mankind, take not Your Holy Spirit away from us.
A pure heart create for me, O God; put a steadfast spirit within me.
O Lord, the descent of Your Holy Spirit on Your Apostles
made them speak a variety of tongues.
When the unbelievers witnessed this marvel, they took it for drunkenness,
when, in fact, it was a cause of salvation for the faithful.
We beseech You, therefore, O Lover of Mankind,
to make us worthy of the revelation of this Spirit with us.
Do not cast me away from Your presence, nor deprive me of Your Holy Spirit.
Heavenly King, Advocate, Spirit of Truth,
who are everywhere present and fill all things,
Treasury of Blessings, Bestower of Life,
come, and dwell within us;
cleanse us of all that defiles us,
and O Good One, save our souls.
In Tone 8
Glory… Now…
In days of old, pride brought confusion of tongues
to the builders of the Tower of Babel,
but now the diversity of tongues enlightened the minds
and gave knowledge for the glory of God.
Then, God punished the impious for their sin;
now, Christ enlightened fishermen through His Spirit.
Then, the confusion of tongues was for the sake of punishment;
now, there was a variety so that voices could be joined in harmony
for the salvation of our souls.
Troparion
Blessed are You, O Christ our God who revealed the fishermen as most wise by sending the, the Holy Spirit; through them You caught the entire world. Loving Master, glory to You. (3)