Prokeimenon (Psalm 75), tone 8: Pray and give thanks to the Lord our God.
Verse: God is known in Judah, His great name is in Israel.
Prokeimenon (Psalm 75), tone 8: Pray and give thanks to the Lord and our God!
Verse: In Judah they know God; in Israel His name is great.
Genesis reading. [Genesis 10:32, 11:1–9.]
These are the tribes of the sons of Noah, according to their kindred, according to their language: from these the islands of the languages were scattered upon the earth by the flood. And the whole earth spoke with one voice, and the voice of all was one. And one day they were given water from the east, having found a field in the land of Shinar, and settled there. And the man said to his neighbor: Come, let us make plinths and bake them with fire. and they turned the stone into stone, and clay instead of chalk. And he said: Come, let us build ourselves a city and a pillar, the top of which will reach even to heaven: and let us make a name for ourselves, before we are scattered across the face of all the earth. And the Lord from below saw the city and the pillar that the sons of mankind had built. And the Lord said: This generation is one, and the mouth of them all is one, and these things began to be done: and now all of them will not be lacking, even if they desire to do. Come, let us go down and confuse their tongues, so that they may not hear the voice of their neighbor. And the Lord scattered them from there over the face of all the earth: and the building of the city and the pillar ceased.
For this reason his name was called confusion, for there were mixtures of the Lord at the mouth of all the earth, and from there the Lord scattered them over the face of all the earth.
Reading Genesis [10:32; 11:1–9]
These are the generations of the sons of Noah, according to their generations, according to their nations. From them the islands of the nations were scattered on earth after the flood. And throughout the whole earth there was one language and one dialect among all peoples. When they came from the east, they found a field in the land of Shinar and settled there. And the people said to each other: “Let’s make bricks and burn them in the fire.” And they used bricks instead of stones, and pitch instead of clay. And they said: “Let us build ourselves a city and a tower, the top of which will reach to heaven itself, and let us make a name for ourselves before we are scattered over the face of the whole earth.” And the Lord God came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men were building. And the Lord said: “Behold, they all have one generation and one language, and this they began to do, and now not a single thing that they want to do will cease. Let us go down and confuse their language there, so that no one listens to the speech of his neighbor.” And the Lord God scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city and the tower.
Therefore, its name was called “Confusion,” for there the Lord God confused the language of the whole earth, and from there the Lord God scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
Prokeimenon (Psalm 76), tone 8: With my voice I cried to the Lord, / with my voice to God, and I heard.
Verse: In the day of my tribulation I sought God with my hand, which I lamented before Him, and I was not deceived.
Prokeimenon (Psalm 76), tone 8: I cried out loudly to the Lord, cried out with my voice to God - and He listened to him!
Verse: During my tribulation, day and night, I actually rushed to God and was not deceived!
Reading parables. [Prov.13:20-26, 14:1-6]
The desires of the pious delight the soul; but the works of the wicked are far from understanding. He who walks with the wise will be wise; he who walks with the foolish will be known. Evil will befall those who sin; but goodness will befall the righteous. A good man will inherit sons; but the wealth of the wicked is treasured by the righteous. The righteous will enjoy much of the riches of the summer: but the unrighteous will quickly perish. He who spares [his] rod hates his son: but he who loves punishes diligently. The righteous poison satisfies his soul: but the souls of the wicked are meager. The wise woman created houses; the foolish woman dug with her hands. He who walks righteously fears the Lord: he who corrupts his ways will be dishonored. Out of the mouth of fools is a rod of vexation: but in the mouth of the wise I keep it. Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean: and where there is much life, the strength of the ox is evident. A faithful witness does not lie: the false witness is unrighteous. You seek wisdom from the wicked and you do not find it; but the sense of the wise is convenient.
Reading the book of Proverbs [13:20–26; 14:1–6]
The desires of the pious delight the soul, but the deeds of the wicked are far from reason. He who associates with the wise will be wise, but he who associates with fools will be recognized. Evil will befall the sinners, but goodness will befall the righteous. A good man will have his sons' sons as heirs, but the wealth of the wicked is reserved for the righteous. The righteous will spend many years in wealth, but the unrighteous will soon perish. He who spares his staff hates his son, but he who loves diligently instructs. The righteous, by eating, satiates his soul, but the souls of the wicked are hungry. Wise wives build houses, but foolish women destroy with their own hands. He who walks upright fears the Lord, but he who crooks his ways will be dishonored. From the mouth of a fool is the scourge of pride, but the lips of the wise protect them. Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, and where there is a lot of food, the strength of the ox is obvious. A faithful witness does not lie, but a lying witness spreads lies. You will seek wisdom from the wicked and will not find it, but knowledge is easily accessible to the wise.