Twentieth Kathisma

David’s. Concerning Goliath, 143.

Blessed is the Lord my God, Who teacheth my hands for battle and my fingers for war. My mercy and my refuge, my helper and my deliverer, my defender is He; and in Him have I hoped, Who subjected my people under me. O Lord, what is man, that Thou art made known unto him? Or the son of man, that Thou takest account of him? Man is like unto vanity, his days like a shadow pass away. O Lord, bow down the heavens and come down; touch the mountains, and they shall smoke. Flash forth lightning, and Thou shalt scatter them; send forth Thine arrows, and Thou shalt trouble them. Send forth Thy hand from on high; rescue and deliver me from many waters, from the hand of the sons of aliens, Whose mouth hath spoken vanity; and their right hand is the right hand of unrighteousness. O God, a new song shall I sing unto Thee; with the psaltery of ten strings shall I chant unto Thee, Who givest salvation unto kings, Who redeemest David Thy servant from the evil sword. Deliver me and rescue me from the hand of the sons of aliens whose mouth hath spoken vanity, and their right hand is the right hand of unrighteousness, Whose sons are like new plants, strongly planted in their youth, their daughters prettified, and lavishly adorned like unto a temple. Their garners are full, bursting forth with all manner of store. Their sheep are abundant in young, multiplying in their gateways; their oxen are fat. There is no breach of wall, nor any passage, nor any outcry in their streets. They have called the people blessed which fareth thus; but blessed is the people whose God is the Lord.

David’s. A Psalm of Praise, 144.

I will exalt Thee, O my God, my king, and I will bless Thy name for ever, yea, for ever and ever. Every day will I bless Thee, and I will praise Thy name for ever, yea, for ever and ever. Great is the Lord and exceedingly to be praised, and of His greatness there is no end. Generation and generation shall praise Thy works, and Thy power shall they declare. Of the majesty of the glory of Thy holiness shall they speak, and they shall tell of Thy wonders. And the power of Thine awesome deeds shall they relate, and they shall tell of Thy majesty. The memory of the multitude of Thy goodness shall they pour forth, and in Thy righteousness shall they rejoice. Compassionate and merciful is the Lord, long-suffering and plenteous in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His compassions are over all His works. Let all Thy works, O Lord, give praise to Thee, and let Thy righteous ones bless Thee. Of the glory of Thy kingdom shall they speak, and shall tell of Thy dominion, to make Thy dominion known to the sons of men, and the glory of the majesty of Thy kingdom. Thy kingdom is the kingdom of all the ages, and Thy sovereignty is in every generation and generation. Faithful is the Lord in all His words, and holy in all His works. The Lord upholdeth all that are falling, and setteth up all that are broken down. The eyes of all look to Thee with hope, and Thou gavest them their food in due season. Thou openest Thy hand and fillest every living thing with Thy favour. Righteous is the Lord in all His ways, and holy in all His works. The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon Him, to all that call on Him in truth. The will of them that fear Him shall He do, and their supplication shall He hear, and He shall save them. The Lord preserveth all that love Him, but all the sinners shall He utterly destroy. My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless His holy name, for ever, yea, for ever and ever.

Glory.

Alleluia. Of Aggeus and Zacharias, 145.

Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord in my life, I will chant unto my God for as long as I have my being. Trust ye not in princes, in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation. His spirit shall go forth, and he shall return unto his earth. In that day all his thoughts shall perish. Blessed is he of whom the God of Jacob is his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God, Who hath made heaven and the earth, the sea and all that is therein, Who keepeth truth unto eternity, Who executeth judgement for the wronged, Who giveth food unto the hungry. The Lord looseth the fettered; the Lord maketh wise the blind; the Lord setteth aright the fallen; the Lord loveth the righteous; the Lord preserveth the proselytes. He shall adopt for His own the orphan and widow, and the way of sinners shall He destroy. The Lord shall be king unto eternity; thy God, O Sion, unto generation and generation.

Alleluia. Of Aggeus and Zacharias, 146.

Praise ye the Lord, for a psalm is a good thing; let praise be sweet unto our God. The Lord buildeth up Jerusalem, He shall gather together the dispersed of Israel. He healeth the broken in heart and bindeth their fractures together. He numbereth the multitude of the stars and calleth them all by name. Great is our Lord, and great is His strength, and of His understanding there is no measure. The Lord lifteth up the meek, but humbleth sinners to the earth. Begin your song to the Lord with thanksgiving, chant unto God with the harp, to Him that covereth heaven with clouds, Who prepareth rain for the earth, Who maketh grass to grow on the mountains, and green herb for the service of man, Who giveth to the beasts their food, and to the younglings of the ravens which call upon Him. He shall not delight in the strength of a horse, nor in the legs of man is He well pleased. The Lord is well pleased in them that fear Him, and in them that hope in His mercy.

Alleluia. Of Aggeus and Zacharias, 147.

Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Sion. For He hath strengthened the bars of thy gates, He hath blessed thy sons within thee. He bringeth peace upon thy borders, and with the fatness of the wheat He filleth thee. He sendeth His saying unto the earth; right swiftly runneth His word. He giveth His snow like wool; the mist He sprinkleth like ashes. He hurleth His ice like morsels. Who shall stand before His cold? He shall send forth His word and melt them; His wind shall blow and the waters shall flow. He declareth His word unto Jacob, His statutes and judgements to Israel. He hath not dealt so with every nation, nor hath He shown His judgements unto them.

Glory.

Alleluia. Of Aggeus and Zacharias, 148.

Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the highest. Praise Him, all ye His angels; praise Him, all ye His hosts. Praise Him, O sun and moon; praise Him, all ye stars and light. Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens, and thou water that art above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for He spake, and they came to be; He commanded, and they were created. He established them for ever, yea, for ever and ever; He hath set an ordinance, and it shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all ye abysses, fire, hail, snow, ice, blast of tempest, which perform His word, the mountains and all the hills, fruitful trees, and all cedars, the beasts and all the cattle, creeping things and winged birds, kings of the earth, and all peoples, princes and all the judges of the earth, young men and virgins, elders with the younger; let them praise the name of the Lord, for exalted is the name of Him alone. His praise is above the earth and heaven, and He shall exalt the horn of His people. This is the hymn for all His saints, for the sons of Israel, and for the people that draw nigh unto Him.

Alleluia, 149.

Sing unto the Lord a new song; His praise is in the church of the saints. Let Israel be glad in Him that made him, let the sons of Sion rejoice in their King. Let them praise His name in the dance; with the timbrel and the psaltery let them chant unto Him. For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people, and He shall exalt the meek with salvation. The saints shall boast in glory, and they shall rejoice upon their beds. The high praise of God shall be in their throat, and two-edged swords shall be in their hands, to do vengeance among the heathen, punishments among the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters, and their nobles with manacles of iron, to do among them the judgement that is written. This glory shall be to all His saints.

Alleluia, 150.

Praise ye God in His saints, praise Him in the firmament of His power. Praise Him for His mighty acts, praise Him according to the multitude of His greatness. Praise Him with the sound of trumpet, praise Him with the psaltery and harp. Praise Him with timbrel and dance, praise him with strings and flute. Praise Him with tuneful cymbals, praise Him with cymbals of jubilation. Let every breath praise the Lord.

Glory, Both Now; Alelluia

This Psalm Is One Written By David’s Own Hand, Though It Is Not Numbered With The 150 Psalms. Composed When He Fought In Single Combat With Goliath.

I was the smallest among my brethren, and the youngest in the house of my father; I did shepherd the sheep of my father. My hands made an instrument, and my fingers fashioned a psaltery. And who shall tell my Lord? The Lord Himself, He Himself shall hearken. He sent forth His angel and took me from the flocks of my father, and anointed me with the oil of His anointing. My brethren were big and good, yet the Lord took not pleasure in them. I went forth to meet the alien, and he cursed me by his idols. But I drew his own sword and beheaded him, and took away the reproach from the sons of Israel.

After The Twentieth Kathisma

Trisagion through Our Father, and these Troparia, in the Eighth Tone:

O my Christ, Fullness of all good things: Fill Thou my soul with joy and gladness, and save me, in that Thou alone art greatly merciful.

Glory: Though I have sinned in Thy sight, O Christ my Savior, yet have I known none other God than Thee. And I make bold [to appeal] to Thy lovingkindness: O compassionate Father, only-begotten Son, and Holy Spirit, accept me who turn to Thee like the prodigal son, and save me!

Both Now: I know none other refuge and fervent intercession saved thee, O Mistress. As thou hast boldness before Him Who was born of thee, help me and save me, thy servant!

Then, Lord, have mercy! forty times, and this Prayer:

O Lord Jesus Christ my God, have mercy upon me, a sinner, Thine unworthy servant, as often as I have sinned as a man all throughout the time of my life, even to this very day. Forgive me my transgressions, voluntary and involuntary, in word and deed, in mind and thought, by captivation and inattention, and by great slothfulness and indifference. And if I have sworn by Thy name, if I have vowed falsely, or blasphemed in thought; or if I have offended, or slandered, or grieved, or angered anyone in any way, or have stolen, or gratified my lust, or lied, or have eaten secretly; or if a friend came to me and I rejected him; or if I have offended or embittered my brother; or if when standing in prayer and psalmody my wicked mind hath dallied among evil thoughts; or if I have indulged in pleasures more than is seemly, or laughed mindlessly, or spoken blasphemously; or if I have been vainglorious, or prideful, or have set my gaze upon vain beauty and been seduced thereby; or if I have given my mind over to things which are harmful to me; or if I have in any way been negligent concerning prayer, or have not kept the commandments of my spiritual father, or have spoken idly, or done ought else which is evil – for all these things and more have I done, and things which I cannot even recall – have mercy, O Lord, and forgive me all, that I may fall asleep and rest in peace, hymning, blessing and glorifying Thee, and Thine unoriginate Father, and Thine all-holy, good and life-creating Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.