Lazarus Saturday

Divine Liturgy

of St. John Chrysostom

Apolytikion of Lazarus Saturday

O Christ when Thou didst raise Lazarus from the dead before Thy Passion, Thou didst confirm the universal resurrection. Wherefore, we like babes carry the banner of triumph and victory, and cry unto Thee, O Vanquisher of Death: Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord!

Kontakion of Lazarus Saturday

To those on the earth, the Joy of all, Christ God, the Truth, the Light and the Life, the Resurrection of the world, in His goodness hath now appeared and is become the true archetype of the Resurrection of all, bestowing divine forgiveness on all men.

The Anti-Trisagion Hymn

As many of you as were baptized into Christ, have put on Christ. Alleluia.

The Epistle Reading

The Lord is my light and my Saviour.

The Lord is the defender of my life.

Hebrews 12:28-13:8

Brethren, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire. Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them; and those who are ill-treated, since you also are in the body. Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for God will judge the immoral and adulterous. Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have; for He has said, “I will never fail you nor forsake you.” Hence we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid; what can man do to me?” Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God; consider the outcome of their life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

The Holy Gospel

John 11:1-45

At that time, a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, in the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to Jesus, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it He said, “This illness is not unto death; it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that he was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was. Then after this Jesus said to the Disciples, “Let us go into Judea again.” The Disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were but now seeking to stone Thee, and Thou art going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” Thus He spoke, and then He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awake him out of sleep.” The Disciples said to Him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of His death, but they thought that He meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow Disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.” Now when Jesus came, He found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met Him, while Mary sat in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother would not have died. And even now I know that whatever Thou wilt ask from God, God will give it Thee.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, He Who is coming into the world.” When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying quietly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to Him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met Him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was and saw Him, fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled; and He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how He loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not He Who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb; it was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. I know that Thou hearest Me always, but I have said this on account of the people standing by, that they may believe that Thou didst send Me.” When He had said this, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what He did, believed in Him.

Megalynarion of Lazarus Saturday

Most rightly do we confess thee as our God’s Birthgiver, we who through thee have been saved, O thou Virgin most pure; with choirs of bodiless Angels, thee do we magnify.

Communion Hymn

Out of the mouths of infants and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise.

V. For I will behold the heavens, the works of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast founded.
V. What is man, that Thou art mindful of Him? Or the son of man, that Thou visitest him?
Thou hast made him a little lower than the Angels; with glory and honour hast Thou crowned Him,

and Thou hast him over the works of Thy hands.

Great Vespers

of Palm Sunday

O Lord I have cried out

Plagal of the Second Tone

Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise Thy Name.

Today hath the grace of the Holy Spirit brought us together; and we all lift Thy Cross as we say: Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!

The righteous shall wait for me until Thou recompense me.

Today hath the grace of the Holy Spirit brought us together; and we all lift Thy Cross as we say: Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!

Out of the depths have I cried to Thee, O Lord, Lord hear my voice.

The Word of God the Father, the Son Who is coeternal with Him, Whose throne is Heaven and Whose footstool is the earth, hath today humbled Himself, coming to Bethany on a dumb beast. Wherefore, the Hebrew youths praised Him, carrying in their hands branches, and crying: Blessed is He that cometh, King of Israel.

Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.

If Thou, O Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? For with Thee there is forgiveness.

Let us also, the new Israel, come together today, the Church of the Gentiles, to shout with the Prophet Zachariah: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold Thy King cometh unto Thee: He is meek and having salvation, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. Wherefore, like babes, feast thou, carrying branches in thy hands, and praise Him, singing: Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He that cometh, King of Israel!

Because of Thy Name have I waited for Thee, O Lord; my soul hath waited upon Thy word, my soul hath hoped in the Lord.

Let us also, the new Israel, come together today, the Church of the Gentiles, to shout with the Prophet Zachariah: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold Thy King cometh unto Thee: He is meek and having salvation, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. Wherefore, like babes, feast thou, carrying branches in thy hands, and praise Him, singing: Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He that cometh, King of Israel!

From the morning watch until night, from the morning watch let Israel trust in the Lord.

O good Christ, when Thou didst foreshadow for us Thine exalted Resurrection, Thou didst raise from the tomb by Thine own command Thy breathless friend Lazarus, who had been dead for four days, and had become decomposed. Thou didst mount symbolically upon an ass, as one borne upon a chariot, thus indicating the Gentiles. Wherefore, beloved Israel did offer Thee the praise from the mouths of innocent babes and sucklings, having beheld Thee, O Saviour, entering into the holy city six days before the Passover.

For with the Lord there is mercy and with Him is abundant redemption, and He will deliver Israel from all his iniquities.

Praise the Lord, all ye nations; praise Him, all ye people.

Before the six days of the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, and His Disciples came to Him and said: O Lord, where wouldest Thou that we prepare for Thee to eat the Passover? And He sent them, saying: Go to the town that lieth before ye, and ye shall find a man carrying a jar of water. Follow him, and say to the lord of the house: The Master saith, I shall eat the Passover with My Disciples.

For His mercy is great toward us, and the truth of the Lord endureth forever.

Doxastikon of Palm Sunday

Plagal of the Second Tone

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Today hath the grace of the Holy Spirit brought us together; and we all lift Thy Cross as we say: Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!

Readings from the Prophetologion

Genesis 49:1-2; 8-12

Jacob called his sons, and said: Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in days to come. Assemble and hear, O sons of Jacob, and hearken to Israel your father. Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, He couched as a lion, and as a lioness; who dares rouse Him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between His feet, until He comes to whom it belongs; and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples. Binding His foal to the vine and His ass’s colt to the choice vine, He washes His garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes; His eyes shall be red with wine, and His teeth white with milk.

Zephaniah 3:14-19

These things doth the Lord say: Sing aloud, O daughter of Sion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; He has cast out your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear evil no more. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Do not fear, O Sion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a Warrior Who gives victory; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will renew you in His love; He will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth.

Zachariah 9:9-15

These things doth the Lord say: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Lo, your King comes to you; triumphant and victorious is He, humble and riding on an ass, on a colt the foal of an ass. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and He shall command peace to the nations; His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of My covenant with you, I will set your captives free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. For I have bent Judah as my bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will brandish your sons, O Sion, over your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword. Then the Lord will appear over them, and His arrow goes forth like lightning; the Lord God will sound the trumpet, and march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts will protect them.

Aposticha

of Palm Sunday

Plagal of the Fourth Tone

Rejoice and be happy, O city of Sion. Be joyful and glad, O Church of God; for behold, thy King is come sitting upon a colt and praised by youth. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed art Thou Who art possessed of bountiful mercies: have mercy upon us.

Out of the mouths of infants and of sucklings Thou hast perfected praise.

Today hath the Saviour come to Jerusalem to fulfill the Scriptures; and all did take in their hands branches of palm trees. And they spread their clothes for Him, knowing that it was He, our Lord, to Whom cherubim unceasingly call out, Hosanna in the highest. Blessed art Thou Who art possessed of bountiful mercies: have mercy upon us.

O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is Thy Name in all the earth!

O Thou Who ridest upon the cherubim, and Who art praised by the seraphim, Thou didst ride upon a colt, O holy, Davidic One. And the youths were praising Thee as befitteth God. And the Jews did blaspheme against Thee wickedly. Thy sitting on an ass foreshadowed the transformation of the bolting of the Gentiles from infidelity to faith. Glory to Thee, O Christ, Who alone art merciful and the Lover of mankind.

Doxastikon of Palm Sunday

Plagal of the Second Tone

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Today hath the grace of the Holy Spirit brought us together; and we all lift Thy Cross as we say: Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!

Dismissal Hymns

Apolytikion of Lazarus Saturday

First Tone

Apolytikion of Palm Sunday

Fourth Tone

O Christ God, when we were buried with Thee in Baptism, we became deserving of Thy Resurrection to immortal life. Wherefore, we praise Thee, crying: Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.

Wisdom of the Holy Fathers

John Chrysostom

Archbishop of Constantinople

†407

~ from his homilies on the gospel of St. John ~

At that time, a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, in the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment.

Many men, when they see those who are pleasing to God suffering–as, for instance, having fallen into sickness or poverty–are offended, not knowing that to those especially dear to God it belongs to endure these things; Lazarus also was one of the friends of Christ, and he was sick.

This illness is not unto death; it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it. Observe how He as-serts that His glory and the Father’s is One; since He intended to delay two days where He was, He for the present sent the messengers with this answer. Why did He delay? So that Lazarus might breathe his last and be buried; in order that none might be able to assert that He restored him when not yet dead, He delayed so long, such that corruption began, and they said, there will be an odor.

Jesus said to the Disciples, Let us go into Judea again. The disciples had been greatly terrified: Rabbi, the Jews were but now seeking to stone You, and You are going there again? They feared for Him, but for the more part rather for themselves; for they were not yet perfect. So Thomas, shaking with fear, said, Let us go, that we also may die with Him. Do you see how the disciples were yet imperfect in their disposition, and did not know His power as they ought? And this was caused by interposing terrors, which troubled and disturbed their souls.

Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. See how great is the heavenly wisdom of the women, although their understanding was weak. For when they saw Christ, they did not break out into mourning and wailing and loud crying; but straightway they reverenced their Teacher. So then both these sisters believed in Christ, but not in a right way; for they did not yet certainly know either that He was God, or that He did these things by His own power and authority. On both points He taught them. For they showed their ignorance of His divinity, by saying, If You had been here, our brother would not have died; and of His own power and authority, by saying, Whatsoever You ask of God, He will give it to You, as though they spoke of some virtuous and approved mortal. But see what Christ says: Your brother shall rise again. When Martha said, I know that he shall rise again in the last day, to prove more clearly His authority, He replied, I am the Resurrection and the Life, showing that He needed none other to help Him, if it be that He Himself is the Life; since if He needed another, how could He be the Resurrection and the Life? Yet He did not plainly state this, but merely hinted it. But when she said again, Whatsoever You ask, He replied, He that believes in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever lives and believes in Me, shall never die. Observe how He led her mind upward; for to raise Lazarus was not the only thing sought; it was necessary that both Martha and those with her should learn the Resurrection.

To prove His human nature, He wept in silence, and deferred the miracle for the present. For since that miracle was a great one, and such as He seldom wrought, and since many were to believe by means of it, He drew to Him many witnesses by His condescension, and showed proof of His human nature: Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. I know that Thou hearest Me always, but I have said this on account of the people standing by, that they may believe that Thou didst send Me. Who ever prayed in this manner? Before uttering any prayer, He said, I thank Thee, showing that He did not need prayer. And I know that Thou hearest Me always. This He said not as though He Himself were powerless, but to show that His will and the Father’s is one. But why did He assume the form of prayer? On account of the people standing by, that they may believe that Thou didst send Me. He did not say, ‘That they may believe that I am inferior, that I have need of an impulse from above, that without prayer I cannot do anything’; but rather, That Thou hast sent Me. This also was a part of His wisdom, to show condescension by words, but by His deeds, power. Amen.

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