Vespers

O Christ Jesus, radiant light
of the immortal glory of the Father of heaven! As the sun sinks to its setting
we are face to face with the twilight of evening: we honour God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy ever to be hymned by voices that are pure, Son of God who gives us life.
The universe proclaims your glory.

Athenegoras, Christian martyr, at the lighting of the lamps

Prayer to Christ

He who is immortal
has suffered much for us.
Come to help us, Son of God, born of Mary! Christ Jesus, come to our aid, born of Mary!

Heavenly shoot from the stock of David,
come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!
Christ Jesus, come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!

May the immortal Son be praised over all the earth. Come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!
Christ Jesus, come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!

In your clemency, you came from heaven to earth. Come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!
Christ Jesus, come to Our aid, O Son, born of Mary!

Master of true life from all eternity,
Come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!
Christ Jesus, come to our aid, O Son, born of Mary!

Egyptian epigraph

Hymn for the night

O Christ, Word of God,
light of light, without beginning,
help of the Spirit, we praise you. Threefold light of one undivided glory, we praise you.
You have banished the darkness and created the light and in this you have created all things seventy generations before your incarnation ex nihilo on one day at the very beginning
To matter you have given life
Giving it the imprint of the face of the world
and the traits of its beauty on the rest of the first 6 days

You have illumined man’s spirit
with reason and wisdom when on the last of the first six days you formed Adam from the moist earth and breathed into him and he became a living soul cast him into a deep sleep and formed eve from his side the first man and woman with none other before them anywhere else and none other with them at the beginning anywhere else from whom are all men descended here on earth wherein all salvation is worked out from the first adam to the last saint saved by no other than you Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviour by your Most Holy Cross
Your eternal light is reflected everywhere,
so that, in the light, man might discover
true beauty, and all become luminous.
You have lit up the heavens with variegated lights.
The night and the day you have commanded to take turns in a rule of fraternal friendship;
the first brings to an end the fatigue of the body,
the other spurs us on to work as commanded;
and we flee from the darkness
to hasten towards that day
which no sadness of the night
can ever bring to an end.
Give to my eyelids a light slumber
that my voice may not long remain silent.
While created things watch to sing psalms with the angels, may my sleep be ever restful in your presence;
may the night make me oblivious of the day’s sins,
and its oddities not beset my dreams.

Even if my body is inert
my spirit, O God, gives you praise! Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
to you be honour and glory and power through all ages. Amen.

Gregory Nazianzen

Evening hymn

Give to us, O Lord, the peace of the evening and save us from the snares of the enemy in the strength of your Holy and victorious
Cross.
Lord of my salvation,
I implore you day and night,
may my prayers come unto you,
bend your ear to my pleading.
May there come to us, a Lord,
a guardian sent by you
to protect us always.
Implant in us, a Lord,
the power of your Holy Cross
which will protect us always.
Make us worthy, O Lord,
to spend this evening
in peace and without temptation.
Deign, a Lord,
during this night,
to keep us in peace and without sin.
The Lord God is with us;
know this, you nations, and be bewildered;
for God is with us.
In him will we hope
and he will be our salvation;
because God is with us. . .
And the people that dwelt in darkness
see the great light;
for God is with us.
And you who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
light will shine upon you;
because God is with us.

And we have been given a Son; for God is with us.
And the dominion
will be on his shoulders;
because God is with us.
And his name will be
“Messenger of the great mystery”; for God is with us.
And “Wonderful Counsellor”;
because God is with us.
And “God the strong prince”; because God is with us.
And the “Prince of peace”,
“Father of the world to come”;
the “Lord God with us”.

Armenian liturgy