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Prayers

The Paschal canon

The chain of hymns at the heart of the night service of Pascha, in eight odes numbered one to nine. The service books credit it to St John of Damascus.

Picture: Rembrandt, Christ and Saint Mary Magdalene at the Tomb, 1638

The words of the prayer

Eight odes · about 10 minutes to read

What this is

Plain English

Ode 1The day of resurrection!Let us be radiant, O peoples!Pascha, the Lord’s Pascha!For Christ our God has brought us overfrom death to lifeand from earth to heaven,as we sing the song of victory.

Let us make our senses pure,and we shall see Christflashing out in the unapproachable lightof the resurrection,and we shall hear Him say plainly, “Rejoice!”,as we sing the song of victory.

Let the heavens rejoice, as is right,and let the earth be glad.Let the whole world keep the feast,all that is seen and all that is unseen.For Christ is risen,the joy that never ends.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 3Come, let us drink a new drink,not one drawn by a wonder from a barren rock,but the fountain of incorruptionthat Christ has poured out like rain from the tomb.In Him we are made firm.

Now all things are filled with light,heaven and earth and the places under the earth.So let all creation keep the feastof Christ’s rising,in which it is made firm.

Yesterday I was buried with You, O Christ;today I rise with You as You rise.Yesterday I was crucified with You.Glorify me with You, O Savior,in Your kingdom.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 4Let Habakkuk, who spoke the words of God,stand with us at the divine watchand show us the angel bright with light,who cries out in a ringing voice:“Today salvation has come to the world,for Christ has risen as the Almighty.”

Christ appeared as a male,for He opened a virgin’s womb.As a mortal He is called a Lamb.As One Who never knew a stainHe is called spotless, our Pascha.And as true GodHe is called perfect.

Like a yearling lamb,our blessed and gracious Crownof His own will was sacrificed for all,the Pascha that makes us clean.And from the tomb, in beauty,the Sun of righteousness has shone on us again.

David, the forefather of God,leaped and danced before the ark,which was a shadow of things to come.Let us, God’s holy people,who see the signs fulfilled,rejoice in God,for Christ has risen as the Almighty.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 5Let us rise very early, before dawn,and bring the Master a hymn in place of myrrh,and we shall see Christ,the Sun of righteousness,making life dawn for all.

Those held in the chains of Hadessaw Your boundless mercy, O Christ,and hurried to the light with joyful feet,clapping their hands for the eternal Pascha.

Let us go out with lamps in our handsto meet Christ coming out of the tomb like a bridegroom,and let us keep God’s saving Paschawith the ranks of angels who love the feast.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 6You went down to the lowest parts of the earth, O Christ,and broke the everlasting barsthat held those who were bound.And on the third day You rose from the tomb,as Jonah came out of the great fish.

Keeping the seals whole, O Christ,You rose from the tomb,You Who left the Virgin’s gate lockedwhen You were born.And You have opened to usthe gates of Paradise.

O my Savior, the living sacrificethat, as God, could not be slain!Of Your own will You offered Yourself to the Father,and when You rose from the tombYou raised with You Adam and all his race.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 7He Who saved the young men from the furnacehas become man and suffers as a mortal.By His suffering He clothes what is mortalin the beauty of incorruption,the only God of our fathers,blessed and glorified above all.

Women wise in God ran after You with myrrh.They sought You with tears as one who had died,but they worshiped You with joy as the living God,and told Your disciples, O Christ,the good news of the mystical Pascha.

We keep the feast of the death of death,the overthrow of Hades,the first fruits of another life, the life eternal.Leaping for joy we praise the One Who caused it,the only God of our fathers,blessed and glorified above all.

How truly holy and festiveis this saving night, bright with light!It is the herald of the shining day of the rising,on which the Light beyond timeshone on all from the tomb in the body.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 8This is the chosen and holy day,the first of the week, its queen and lady,the feast of feastsand the festival of festivals,on which we bless Christ for ever.

Come, on this glorious day of the rising,let us share in the new fruit of the vineof divine joy,and in the kingdom of Christ,praising Him as God for ever.

Lift up your eyes, O Zion, and look around you!For see, your children have come to you,shining with God’s light like stars,from the west and the north,from the sea and the east,blessing Christ in you for ever.

Almighty Father, Word and Spirit,one nature united in three Persons,above all being and all divinity!Into You we have been baptized,and we bless You for all ages.

The first verse again, then “Christ is risen” three timesJesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Ode 9Magnify, O my soul, the One Who suffered of His own will,was buried, and rose from the tomb on the third day.

Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem,for the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.Dance now and be glad, O Zion!And you, pure Mother of God, take delightin the rising of the One you bore.

Magnify, O my soul, Christ the Giver of life,Who rose from the tomb on the third day.“Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem” again

An angel flashing with light cried out to the women:“Stop your weeping, for Christ has risen.”

O how divine, how dear, how very sweet is Your voice!For You have truly promised, O Christ,to be with us to the end of the age.We the faithful hold fast to that voiceas the anchor of our hope, and we rejoice.

For Christ has risen,trampling down death and raising the dead.Rejoice, O peoples!

O Christ, great and most holy Pascha!O Wisdom and Word and Power of God!Grant that we may share in You more fullyin the day of Your kingdom that knows no evening.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

Magnify, O my soul, the might of the Godhead,three in Persons and undivided.

With one voice, O Virgin, we the faithful call you blessed:Rejoice, gate of the Lord!Rejoice, living city!Rejoice, for through you the light of the One born of you,the light of the resurrection from the dead,has shone on us today.

Now and ever, and for ever and ever. Amen.

Rejoice, O Virgin, rejoice!Rejoice, O blessed one!Rejoice, O glorified one!For your Son has risen from the tomb on the third day.

Be glad and rejoice, O divine gate of the light!For Jesus, Who sank into the tomb, has dawned,shining brighter than the sun,and has filled all the faithful with light,O Lady, given grace by God.

The angel cried out to her who is full of grace:“Pure Virgin, rejoice!And again I say, rejoice!Your Son has risen from the tomb on the third day.”“Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem” again, then “Christ is risen” three times

Jesus has risen from the tomb, as He foretold,and has given us eternal life and great mercy.

Traditional wording, 1906

Ode 1The Day of Resurrection! Let us be illumined, O ye people! The Passover, the Passover of the Lord! From death unto life, and from earth unto heaven hath Christ our God brought us over, singing a song of victory!Christ is risen from the dead!Let us purify our senses and we shall behold Christ, radiant with the light ineffable of the Resurrection, and shall hear Him say, in accents clear: Rejoice! as we sing the song of victory.Christ is risen from the dead!For meet is it that the heavens should rejoice, and that the earth should be glad, and that the whole world, both visible and invisible, should keep the Feast. For Christ is risen, the everlasting joy!

Ode 3O come, let us quaff a beverage new, not from a barren rock miraculously called forth; but the Fountain of Immortality springing from the tomb of Christ: on Whom also we are founded.Christ is risen from the dead!Now are all things filled with light; heaven, and earth, and the places under the earth. All Creation doth celebrate the Resurrection of Christ, on Whom also it is founded.Yesterday, O Christ, was I buried with Thee, and to-day I rise again with Thy rising. Yesterday was I crucified with Thee: Do Thou Thyself glorify me, O Saviour, in Thy kingdom.

Ode 4May Habakkuk, divinely speaking, now stand with us in watch divine, and show the radiant Angel crying clearly: To-day is salvation come into the world: For Christ is risen, in that He is almighty.Christ is risen from the dead!Christ revealed Himself as of the male sex when He opened the Virgin’s womb, and as mortal was called the Lamb. Without blemish, also, is our Passover, in that He tasted not corruption; and as very God perfect was proclaimed.Christ, the blessed Crown, like unto a yearling Lamb, of His own good will did sacrifice Himself for all, a Passover of purification: and from the grave did He, the glorious Sun of Righteousness, shine forth again upon us.David, the ancestor of our God, danced with leaping before the symbolical Ark of the Covenant. Let us also, the holy people of God, beholding the fulfilment of the symbol, rejoice in godly wise: For Christ is risen, in that He is almighty.

Ode 5Right early let us wake, and unto the Lord bring a song instead of myrrh, and we shall behold Christ, the Sun of Righteousness, Who lighteth the life of all mankind.Christ is risen from the dead!When they who were led captive in the bonds of Hell beheld Thy loving-kindness infinite, O Christ, they hastened to the light with joyful feet, exalting the Passover Everlasting.Bearing lights, let us go forth to meet Christ, Who cometh forth from the grave like a bridegroom. And with the hierarchy of Angels who love and praise, let us celebrate the ransoming Passover of God.

Ode 6Thou didst descend into the nethermost parts of the earth, O Christ, and didst shatter the bonds eternal which held the prisoners in captivity: and after three days Thou didst rise again from the grave, like Jonah from the whale.Christ is risen from the dead!O Christ, Who didst not break the Virgin’s gate by Thy birth, Thou didst rise again from the dead, having kept intact the seals; and Thou hast opened unto us the gates of Paradise.O my Saviour, the sacrifice living and unslain, which, inasmuch as Thou art God could not be slain! When Thou, of Thine own will, hadst offered up Thyself unto the Father, Thou didst raise up with Thee also, in that Thou Thyself didst rise from the grave, Adam, the father of our race.

Ode 7He Who delivered the Holy Children from the fiery furnace, when He was made man did suffer like unto a mortal; and through His Passion He doth clothe the mortal in the dignity of immortality, He, the only God of our fathers, blessed and exceedingly glorified.Christ is risen from the dead!The godly-wise women followed after Thee in haste with sweet-smelling spices. But Him Whom they sought with tears as dead, they joyfully adored as the living God, and announced unto Thy disciples, O Christ, the glad tidings of the mystical Passover.We celebrate the death of Death, the annihilation of Hell, the beginning of a life new and everlasting. And in ecstasy we sing praises unto the Author thereof, the only God of our fathers, blessed and exceeding glorious.For holy, in very truth, and worthy of all solemn triumph, is this redeeming and radiantly effulgent night, the harbinger of the bright-beaming Day of the Resurrection, on which the Light Eternal that hath no bounds shone forth in the flesh from the grave for all mankind.

Ode 8This is the chosen and holy Day, like unto no other, the King and Lord of Sabbaths, the Feast of Feasts, and the Triumph of Triumphs: Wherein let us bless Christ forevermore!Christ is risen from the dead!O come, on this auspicious day of the Resurrection, let us partake of the fruit from the new vine of divine gladness of the kingdom of Christ, in song magnifying Him as God forevermore.Cast thine eyes about thee, O Zion, and behold! For lo! from the West and from the North, and from the Sea and from the East, as to a light by God illumined, have thy children assembled unto thee, blessing Christ forevermore.O most Holy Trinity, our God, glory to Thee!O Father Almighty, the Word and the Spirit, one Essence in Three Persons, exceeding high and most divine! Into Thee have we been baptized, and Thee will we bless unto all the ages.

Ode 9My soul doth magnify the Life-giver, Who rose again from the grave on the third day.Shine, shine, O New Jerusalem! for the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. Keep high holiday now and be glad, Zion! And rejoice thou, O pure Birth-giver of God, in the rising again of Him Whom thou didst bear!My soul doth magnify Him Who, of His own good will, suffered and was buried, and rose again on the third day.Christ the New Passover, the living Sacrifice, the Lamb of God, taketh away the sins of the world.O how divine! O how loving-kind! O how most sweet is Thy word, O Christ! For Thou hast faithfully promised to be with us, even unto the end of the world. Having, therefore, this firm foundation of hope, we faithful do rejoice.The Angel cried unto her who is full of grace: Hail, O Pure Virgin! And again, I say: Hail! Thy Son is risen from His three days’ sojourn in the grave, and hath raised up the dead: Rejoice, O ye people!In that Thou Thyself didst sleep in death, Thou hast raised up again the dead of all the ages, roaring royally, like unto the Lion of Judah.Mary Magdalen ran to the sepulchre, and when she beheld Christ, she questioned Him, as He had been the gardener.O Christ, the Passover great and most holy! O Wisdom, Word and Power of God! Grant that we may more perfectly partake of Thee in the day which knoweth no night of Thy kingdom.The Angel, dazzling the Women, cried: Desist from tears, for Christ is risen.Christ is risen, trampling down Death and raising again the dead: Rejoice, O ye people!To-day doth every creature rejoice and shout for joy. For Christ is risen, and Hell is led in captivity.Today hath the Lord led Hell in captivity, raising up the prisoners which from eternity it had held in bitter bondage.My soul doth magnify the majesty of the Godhead, of Three Persons and undivided.Rejoice, O Virgin! Rejoice, O Blessed One! Rejoice, O greatly glorified One! For thy Son is risen from His three days’ sojourn in the grave.

Plain English by Wiser Walk, from the Greek, with Hapgood’s 1906 translation beside it. How the wording is made. Traditional wording: Isabel F. Hapgood, Service Book of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic Church, 1906.

Hapgood gives the canon as the Russian books sing it: “Christ is risen from the dead!” before each verse and a longer set of refrains in the ninth ode, without the two hymns to the Mother of God at its end. After each ode she gives the repeats only by their first words.

When it is said

It is the heart of Matins on the night of Pascha. Each ode opens with its irmos, the verse that sets the tune for the verses after it, and closes with “Christ is risen”.

It is sung again on the days of Bright Week, when later verses to the Mother of God are added after each ode.

In Russian practice it is sung again at Sunday Matins on four Sundays after Pascha. In Bright Week it also follows the Paschal Hours in the prayers before Communion.

Where it comes from

Author by tradition

Who wrote it?

The service books credit the canon to St John of Damascus, who lived in Palestine in the 700s. In a short commentary on it, Fr Michael Zheltov notes that it quotes St Gregory the Theologian’s Easter sermons word for word in several places. The eighth ode is built around Gregory’s words that Pascha is “the feast of feasts and the festival of festivals”.

Isabel F. Hapgood, Service Book (1906); Fr Michael Zheltov, a short commentary on the Paschal canon, on Azbyka.ru

Eight odes, numbered to nine

The canon has eight odes, numbered 1 and 3 to 9, with no second ode. Zheltov notes that it has none of the verses to the Mother of God that close the odes of most canons. Later, the hymn writers Theophanes and Joseph each added a set for the days after Pascha. The Greek books also print two such verses at the end of the ninth ode.

Fr Michael Zheltov, on Azbyka.ru; The Greek Pentecostarion, on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America’s liturgical texts site

Its verses after Easter night

Parts of the canon are sung all through the season. In Russian practice its opening verses close the odes of Matins on Thomas Sunday and on some feasts. At the Liturgy until the Ascension, the angel’s greeting and “Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem” from the ninth ode take the place of “It is truly right”.

Azbyka.ru, on the rule of prayer at Pascha

What the words mean

Old songs, new meaning

Each irmos looks back to a song of the Bible and turns it toward Easter. The water God brought out of the rock for Israel (Exodus 17:6) becomes the fountain flowing from Christ’s tomb. Habakkuk at his watch (Habakkuk 2:1) is asked to show the angel at the tomb. Jonah’s three days in the great fish (Jonah 1:17) stand for Christ’s three days in the earth.

Fr Michael Zheltov, on Azbyka.ru

“Yesterday I was buried with You”

In the early Church, Zheltov notes, those learning the faith were baptized on the eve of Pascha. So the line can mean their baptism the day before, in Paul’s words, “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death” (Romans 6:4). It can also mean the services of Holy Week just past.

Fr Michael Zheltov, on Azbyka.ru

The Passover lamb

The fourth ode reads Christ through the lamb of the first Passover, which had to be “an unblemished year-old male” (Exodus 12:5), as Zheltov points out. So the ode calls Christ male, a Lamb and spotless, and the next verse calls Him a yearling lamb, the Pascha that makes us clean.

Fr Michael Zheltov, on Azbyka.ru

The Scripture in it

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: “I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted. The horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.”

Exodus 15:1 Echoed Israel’s song of victory after the sea, the song of the first ode.

“Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Exodus 17:6 Echoed The water from the rock, set beside the fountain from the tomb in the third ode.

We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life.

Romans 6:4 Echoed Buried with Christ through baptism: “Yesterday I was buried with You.”

I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the ramparts. I will watch to see what He will say to me, and how I should answer when corrected.

Habakkuk 2:1 Echoed The prophet at his watch, the opening of the fourth ode.

Your lamb must be an unblemished year-old male, and you may take it from the sheep or the goats.

Exodus 12:5 Echoed The lamb without blemish, a year-old male: the fourth ode’s Pascha.

Now the LORD had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.

Jonah 1:17 Echoed Three days in the great fish, as Christ was three days in the tomb.

Lift up your eyes and look around: They all gather and come to you; your sons will come from afar, and your daughters will be carried on the arm.

Isaiah 60:4 Echoed “Lift up your eyes and look around”: Zion’s children coming home in the eighth ode.

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.

Isaiah 60:1 Quoted “Shine, for your light has come”: the ninth ode’s “Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem”.

“and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:20 Echoed Christ’s promise to be with us to the end of the age, in the ninth ode.

Bible text: Berean Standard Bible, public domain.

In Greek

Show the Greek text

ᾨδὴ α'

«Ἀναστάσεως ἡμέρα λαμπρυνθῶμεν Λαοί, Πάσχα Κυρίου, Πάσχα· ἐκ γὰρ θανάτου πρὸς ζωήν, καὶ ἐκ γῆς πρὸς οὐρανόν, Χριστὸς ὁ Θεός, ἡμᾶς διεβίβασεν, ἐπινίκιον ᾄδοντας».

Καθαρθῶμεν τὰς αἰσθήσεις, καὶ ὀψόμεθα, τῷ ἀπροσίτῳ φωτὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως, Χριστὸν ἐξαστράπτοντα, καί, Χαίρετε, φάσκοντα, τρανῶς ἀκουσόμεθα, ἐπινίκιον ᾄδοντες.

Οὐρανοὶ μὲν ἐπαξίως εὐφραινέσθωσαν, γῆ δὲ ἀγαλλιάσθω, ἑορταζέτω δὲ κόσμος, ὁρατός τε ἅπας καὶ ἀόρατος· Χριστὸς γὰρ ἐγήγερται, εὐφροσύνη αἰώνιος.

Καταβασία

«Ἀναστάσεως ἡμέρα λαμπρυνθῶμεν Λαοί, Πάσχα Κυρίου, Πάσχα· ἐκ γὰρ θανάτου πρὸς ζωήν, καὶ ἐκ γῆς πρὸς οὐρανόν, Χριστὸς ὁ Θεός, ἡμᾶς διεβίβασεν, ἐπινίκιον ᾄδοντας».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ γ'

«Δεῦτε πόμα πίωμεν καινόν, οὐκ ἐκ πέτρας ἀγόνου τερατουργούμενον, ἀλλ' ἀφθαρσίας πηγήν, ἐκ τάφου ὀμβρήσαντος Χριστοῦ, ἐν ᾧ στερεούμεθα».

Νῦν πάντα πεπλήρωται φωτός, οὐρανός τε καὶ γῆ, καὶ τὰ καταχθόνια· ἑορταζέτω γοῦν πᾶσα κτίσις, τὴν Ἔγερσιν Χριστοῦ, ἐν ᾗ ἐστερέωται.

Χθὲς συνεθαπτόμην Σοι Χριστὲ συνεγείρομαι σήμερον ἀναστάντι Σοι, συνεσταυρούμην Σοι χθὲς, Αὐτός με συνδόξασον Σωτήρ, ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ Σου.

Καταβασία

«Δεῦτε πόμα πίωμεν καινόν, οὐκ ἐκ πέτρας ἀγόνου τερατουργούμενον, ἀλλ' ἀφθαρσίας πηγήν, ἐκ τάφου ὀμβρήσαντος Χριστοῦ, ἐν ᾧ στερεούμεθα».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ δ'

«Ἐπὶ τῆς θείας φυλακῆς ὁ θεηγόρος Ἀββακούμ, στήτω μεθ' ἡμῶν καὶ δεικνύτω, φαεσφόρον Ἄγγελον, διαπρυσίως λέγοντα· Σήμερον σωτηρία τῷ κόσμῳ, ὅτι ἀνέστη Χριστός ὡς παντοδύναμος».

Ἄρσεν μέν, ὡς διανοῖξαν, τὴν παρθενεύουσαν νηδύν, πέφηνε Χριστός, ὡς βροτὸς δέ, ἀμνὸς προσηγόρευται, ἄμωμος δέ, ὡς ἄγευστος κηλῖδος, τὸ ἡμέτερον Πάσχα, καὶ ὡς Θεὸς ἀληθής, τέλειος λέλεκται.

Ὡς ἐνιαύσιος ἀμνός, ὁ εὐλογούμενος ἡμῖν, στέφανος χρηστὸς ἑκουσίως, ὑπὲρ πάντων τέθυται, Πάσχα τὸ καθαρτήριον, καὶ αὖθις ἐκ τοῦ τάφου ὡραῖος, δικαιοσύνης ἡμῖν ἔλαμψεν ἥλιος.

Ὁ θεοπάτωρ μὲν Δαυΐδ, πρὸ τῆς σκιώδους κιβωτοῦ ἥλατο σκιρτῶν, ὁ λαὸς δὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ ἅγιος, τὴν τῶν συμβόλων ἔκβασιν, ὁρῶντες, εὐφρανθῶμεν ἐνθέως, ὅτι ἀνέστη Χριστὸς ὡς παντοδύναμος.

Καταβασία

«Ἐπὶ τῆς θείας φυλακῆς ὁ θεηγόρος Ἀββακούμ, στήτω μεθ' ἡμῶν καὶ δεικνύτω, φαεσφόρον Ἄγγελον, διαπρυσίως λέγοντα· Σήμερον σωτηρία τῷ κόσμῳ, ὅτι ἀνέστη Χριστός ὡς παντοδύναμος».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ ε'

«Ὀρθρίσωμεν ὄρθρου βαθέος, καὶ ἀντὶ μύρου τὸν ὕμνον προσοίσομεν τῷ Δεσπότῃ, καὶ Χριστὸν ὀψόμεθα, δικαιοσύνης ἥλιον, πᾶσι ζωὴν ἀνατέλλοντα».

Τὴν ἄμετρόν Σου εὐσπλαγχνίαν, οἱ ταῖς τοῦ ᾍδου σειραῖς, συνεχόμενοι δεδορκότες, πρὸς τὸ φῶς ἠπείγοντο Χριστέ, ἀγαλλομένῳ ποδί, Πάσχα κροτοῦντες αἰώνιον.

Προσέλθωμεν λαμπαδηφόροι, τῷ προϊόντι Χριστῷ ἐκ τοῦ μνήματος, ὡς νυμφίῳ, καὶ συνεορτάσωμεν ταῖς φιλεόρτοις τάξεσι, Πάσχα Θεοῦ τὸ σωτήριον.

Καταβασία

«Ὀρθρίσωμεν ὄρθρου βαθέος, καὶ ἀντὶ μύρου τὸν ὕμνον προσοίσομεν τῷ Δεσπότῃ, καὶ Χριστὸν ὀψόμεθα, δικαιοσύνης ἥλιον, πᾶσι ζωὴν ἀνατέλλοντα».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ ς'

«Κατῆλθες ἐν τοῖς κατωτάτοις τῆς γῆς, καὶ συνέτριψας μοχλοὺς αἰωνίους, κατόχους πεπεδημένων Χριστέ, καὶ τριήμερος ὡς ἐκ κήτους Ἰωνᾶς, ἐξανέστης τοῦ τάφου».

Φυλάξας τὰ σήμαντρα σῷα Χριστέ, ἐξηγέρθης τοῦ τάφου, ὁ τὰς κλεῖς τῆς Παρθένου μὴ λυμηνάμενος ἐν τῷ τόκῳ Σου, καὶ ἀνέῳξας ἡμῖν, Παραδείσου τὰς πύλας.

Σῶτέρ μου τὸ ζῶν τε καὶ ἄθυτον, ἱερεῖον, ὡς Θεός, Σεαυτὸν ἑκουσίως, προσαγαγὼν τῷ Πατρί, συνανέστησας, παγγενῆ τὸν Ἀδάμ, ἀναστὰς ἐκ τοῦ τάφου.

Καταβασία

«Κατῆλθες ἐν τοῖς κατωτάτοις τῆς γῆς, καὶ συνέτριψας μοχλοὺς αἰωνίους, κατόχους πεπεδημένων Χριστέ, καὶ τριήμερος ὡς ἐκ κήτους Ἰωνᾶς, ἐξανέστης τοῦ τάφου».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ ζ'

«Ὁ Παῖδας ἐκ καμίνου ῥυσάμενος, γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος, πάσχει ὡς θνητός, καὶ διὰ Πάθους τὸ θνητόν, ἀφθαρσίας ἐνδύει εὐπρέπειαν, ὁ μόνος εὐλογητὸς τῶν Πατέρων, Θεὸς καὶ ὑπερένδοξος».

Γυναῖκες μετὰ μύρων θεόφρονες, ὀπίσω Σου ἔδραμον, Ὃν δὲ ὡς θνητόν, μετὰ δακρύων ἐζήτουν, προσεκύνησαν χαίρουσαι ζῶντα Θεόν, καὶ Πάσχα τὸ μυστικὸν Σοῖς Χριστὲ Μαθηταῖς εὐηγγελίσαντο.

Θανάτου ἑορτάζομεν νέκρωσιν, ᾍδου τὴν καθαίρεσιν, ἄλλης βιοτῆς, τῆς αἰωνίου ἀπαρχήν, καὶ σκιρτῶντες ὑμνοῦμεν τὸν αἴτιον, τὸν μόνον εὐλογητὸν τῶν Πατέρων, Θεὸν καὶ ὑπερένδοξον.

Ὡς ὄντως ἱερὰ καὶ πανέορτος, αὕτη ἡ σωτήριος, νὺξ καὶ φωταυγής, τῆς λαμπροφόρου ἡμέρας, τῆς Ἐγέρσεως οὖσα προάγγελος, ἐν ᾗ τὸ ἄχρονον φῶς, ἐκ τάφου σωματικῶς πᾶσιν ἐπέλαμψεν.

Καταβασία

«Ὁ Παῖδας ἐκ καμίνου ῥυσάμενος, γενόμενος ἄνθρωπος, πάσχει ὡς θνητός, καὶ διὰ Πάθους τὸ θνητόν, ἀφθαρσίας ἐνδύει εὐπρέπειαν, ὁ μόνος εὐλογητὸς τῶν Πατέρων, Θεὸς καὶ ὑπερένδοξος».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ η'

«Αὕτη ἡ κλητὴ καὶ ἁγία ἡμέρα, ἡ μία τῶν Σαββάτων, ἡ βασιλὶς καὶ κυρία, ἑορτῶν ἑορτή, καὶ πανήγυρις ἐστὶ πανηγύρεων, ἐν ᾗ εὐλογοῦμεν, Χριστὸν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας».

Δεῦτε τοῦ καινοῦ τῆς ἀμπέλου γεννήματος τῆς θείας εὐφροσύνης, ἐν τῇ εὐσήμῳ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς ἐγέρσεως, βασιλείας τε Χριστοῦ κοινωνήσωμεν, ὑμνοῦντες Αὐτόν, ὡς Θεόν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας.

Ἆρον κύκλῳ τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου Σιὼν καὶ ἴδε· ἰδοὺ γὰρ ἥκασί σοι, θεοφεγγεῖς ὡς φωστῆρες, ἐκ δυσμῶν καὶ βορρᾶ, καὶ θαλάσσης, καὶ ἑῴας τᾶ τέκνα σου ἐν σοὶ εὐλογοῦντα, Χριστὸν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας.

Πάτερ παντοκράτορ, καὶ Λόγε, καὶ Πνεῦμα, τρισὶν ἑνιζομένη, ἐν ὑποστάσεσι φύσις, ὑπερούσιε καὶ ὑπέρθεε εἰς Σὲ βεβαπτίσμεθα, καὶ Σὲ εὐλογοῦμεν, εἰς πάντας τοὺς αἰῶνας.

Καταβασία

«Αὕτη ἡ κλητὴ καὶ ἁγία ἡμέρα, ἡ μία τῶν Σαββάτων, ἡ βασιλὶς καὶ κυρία, ἑορτῶν ἑορτή, καὶ πανήγυρις ἐστὶ πανηγύρεων, ἐν ᾗ εὐλογοῦμεν, Χριστὸν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας».

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

ᾨδὴ θ'

Μεγάλυνον, ψυχή μου, τὸν ἐθελουσίως παθόντα καὶ ταφέντα καὶ ἐξαναστάντα τριήμερον ἐκ τάφου.

Φωτίζου, φωτίζου ἡ νέα Ἱερουσαλήμ· ἡ γὰρ δόξα Κυρίου ἐπὶ σὲ ἀνέτειλε. Χόρευε νῦν, καὶ ἀγάλλου Σιών· σὺ δὲ ἁγνή, τέρπου, Θεοτόκε, ἐν τῇ ἐγέρσει τοῦ τόκου σου.

Μεγάλυνον, ψυχή μου, τὸν ἐξαναστάντα τριήμερον ἐκ τάφου Χριστὸν τὸν ζωοδότην.

Φωτίζου, φωτίζου ἡ νέα Ἱερουσαλήμ· ἡ γὰρ δόξα Κυρίου ἐπὶ σὲ ἀνέτειλε. Χόρευε νῦν, καὶ ἀγάλλου Σιών· σὺ δὲ ἁγνή, τέρπου, Θεοτόκε, ἐν τῇ ἐγέρσει τοῦ τόκου σου.

Ἄγγελος ἐξαστράπτων ταῖς γυναιξὶν ἐβόα· Παύσασθε τῶν δακρύων, ὅτι Χριστὸς ἀνέστη.

῍Ω θείας! ὢ φίλης! ὢ γλυκυτάτης Σου φωνῆς! μεθ' ἡμῶν ἀψευδῶς γάρ, ἐπηγγείλω, ἔσεσθαι, μέχρι τερμάτων αἰῶνος Χριστέ· ἣν οἱ πιστοί, ἄγκυραν ἐλπίδος, κατέχοντες ἀγαλλόμεθα.

Ὅτι Χριστὸς ἀνέστη τὸν θάνατον πατήσας καὶ τοὺς νεκροὺς ἐγείρας, λαοί, ἀγαλλιᾶσθε.

῍Ω Πάσχα τὸ μέγα, καὶ ἱερώτατον Χριστέ· ὤ σοφία καὶ Λόγε, τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ δύναμις· δίδου ἡμῖν ἐκτυπώτερον, Σοῦ μετασχεῖν, ἐν τῇ ἀνεσπέρῳ, ἡμέρᾳ τῆς βασιλείας Σου.

Δόξα...

Μεγάλυνον, ψυχή μου, τῆς τρισυποστάτου καὶ ἀδιαιρέτου Θεότητος τὸ κράτος.

Συμφώνως Παρθένε, σὲ μακαρίζομεν πιστοί· Χαῖρε πύλη Κυρίου· χαῖρε πόλις ἔμψυχε· χαῖρε, δι' ἧς ἡμῖν ἔλαμψε, σήμερον φῶς τοῦ ἐκ σοῦ τεχθέντος, τῆς ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστάσεως.

Καὶ νῦν...

Χαῖρε, Παρθένε, χαῖρε· χαῖρε, εὐλογημένη· χαῖρε, δεδοξασμένη, σὸς γὰρ Υἱὸς ἀνέστη τριήμερος ἐκ τάφου.

Εὐφραίνου, ἀγάλλου, ἡ θεία πύλη τοῦ φωτός· ὁ γὰρ δύνας ἐν τάφῳ, Ἰησοῦς ἀνέτειλε, λάμψας ἡλίου φαιδρότερον, καὶ τοὺς πιστοὺς πάντας καταυγάσας, θεοχαρίτωτε Δέσποινα.

Καταβασία

Ὁ ἄγγελος ἐβόα τῇ κεχαριτωμένῃ· Ἁγνὴ Παρθένε, χαῖρε, καὶ πάλιν ἐρῶ· Χαῖρε· ὁ σὸς Υἱὸς ἀνέστη τριήμερος ἐκ τάφου.

Φωτίζου, φωτίζου ἡ νέα Ἱερουσαλήμ· ἡ γὰρ δόξα Κυρίου ἐπὶ σὲ ἀνέτειλε. Χόρευε νῦν, καὶ ἀγάλλου Σιών· σὺ δὲ ἁγνή, τέρπου, Θεοτόκε, ἐν τῇ ἐγέρσει τοῦ τόκου σου.

Χριστὸς ἀνέστη...

Ἀναστὰς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἀπὸ τοῦ τάφου καθὼς προεῖπεν, ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν τὴν αἰώνιον ζωὴν καὶ μέγα ἔλεος.

From the Greek Pentecostarion for the Sunday of Pascha, on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America’s liturgical texts site.

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