Easter Vigil 2015

First Reading

Genesis:   1: 1-2: 2

1:1	In the beginning, God created heaven and earth.
1:2	But the earth was empty and unoccupied, and darknesses were over the face of the abyss; and so the Spirit of God was brought over the waters.
1:3	And God said, “Let there be light.” And light became.
1:4	And God saw the light, that it was good; and so he divided the light from the darknesses.
1:5	And he called the light, ‘Day,’ and the darknesses, ‘Night.’ And it became evening and morning, one day.
1:6	God also said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide waters from waters.”
1:7	And God made a firmament, and he divided the waters that were under the firmament, from those that were above the firmament. And so it became.
1:8	And God called the firmament ‘Heaven.’ And it became evening and morning, the second day.
1:9	Truly God said: “Let the waters that are under heaven be gathered together into one place; and let the dry land appear.” And so it became.
1:10	And God called the dry land, ‘Earth,’ and he called the gathering of the waters, ‘Seas.’ And God saw that it was good.
1:11	And he said, “Let the land spring forth green plants, both those producing seed, and fruit-bearing trees, producing fruit according to their kind, whose seed is within itself, over all the earth.” And so it became.
1:12	And the land brought forth green plants, both those producing seed, according to their kind, and trees producing fruit, with each having its own way of sowing, according to its species. And God saw that it was good.
1:13	And it became evening and the morning, the third day.
1:14	Then God said: “Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven. And let them divide day from night, and let them become signs, both of the seasons, and of the days and years.
1:15	Let them shine in the firmament of heaven and illuminate the earth.” And so it became.
1:16	And God made two great lights: a greater light, to rule over the day, and a lesser light, to rule over the night, along with the stars.
1:17	And he set them in the firmament of heaven, to give light over all the earth,
1:18	and to rule over the day as well as the night, and to divide light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.
1:19	And it became evening and morning, the fourth day.
1:20	And then God said, “Let the waters produce animals with a living soul, and flying creatures above the earth, under the firmament of heaven.”
1:21	And God created the great sea creatures, and everything with a living soul and the ability to move that the waters produced, according to their species, and all the flying creatures, according to their kind. And God saw that it was good.
1:22	And he blessed them, saying: “Increase and multiply, and fill the waters of the sea. And let the birds be multiplied above the land.”
1:23	And it became evening and morning, the fifth day.
1:24	God also said, “Let the land produce living souls in their kind: cattle, and animals, and wild beasts of the earth, according to their species.” And so it became.
1:25	And God made the wild beasts of the earth according to their species, and the cattle, and every animal on the land, according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
1:26	And he said: “Let us make Man to our image and likeness. And let him rule over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and the wild beasts, and the entire earth, and every animal that moves on the earth.”
1:27	And God created man to his own image; to the image of God he created him; male and female, he created them.
1:28	And God blessed them, and he said, “Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
1:29	And God said: “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant upon the earth, and all the trees that have in themselves the ability to sow their own kind, to be food for you,
1:30	and for all the animals of the land, and for all the flying things of the air, and for everything that moves upon the earth and in which there is a living soul, so that they may have these on which to feed.” And so it became.
1:31	And God saw everything that he had made. And they were very good. And it became evening and morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 2

2:1	And so the heavens and the earth were completed, with all their adornment.
2:2	And on the seventh day, God fulfilled his work, which he had made. And on the seventh day he rested from all his work, which he had accomplished.

Second Reading

Genesis:   22: 1-18

22:1	After these things occurred, God tested Abraham, and he said to him, “Abraham, Abraham.” And he answered, “Here I am.”
22:2	He said to him: “Take your only begotten son Isaac, whom you love, and go into the land of vision. And there you shall offer him as a holocaust upon one of the mountains, which I will show to you.”
22:3	And so Abraham, getting up in the night, harnessed his donkey, taking with him two youths, and his son Isaac. And when he had cut wood for the holocaust, he traveled toward the place, as God had instructed him.
22:4	Then, on the third day, lifting up his eyes, he saw the place at a distance.
22:5	And he said to his servants: “Wait here with the donkey. I and the boy will hurry further ahead to that place. After we have worshipped, will return to you.”
22:6	He also took the wood for the holocaust, and he imposed it upon his son Isaac. And he himself carried in his hands fire and a sword. And as the two continued on together,
22:7	Isaac said to his father, “My father.” And he answered, “What do you want, son?” “Behold,” he said, “fire and wood. Where is the victim for the holocaust?”
22:8	But Abraham said, “God himself will provide the victim for the holocaust, my son.” Thus they continued on together.
22:9	And they came to the place that God had shown to him. There he built an altar, and he set the wood in order upon it. And when he had bound his son Isaac, he laid him on the altar upon the pile of wood.
22:10	And he reached out his hand and took hold of the sword, in order to sacrifice his son.
22:11	And behold, an Angel of the Lord called out from heaven, saying, “Abraham, Abraham.” And he answered, “Here I am.”
22:12	And he said to him, “Do not extend your hand over the boy, and do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, since you have not spared your only begotten son for my sake.”
22:13	Abraham lifted up his eyes, and he saw behind his back a ram among the thorns, caught by the horns, which he took and offered as a holocaust, instead of his son.
22:14	And he called the name of that place: ‘The Lord Sees.’ Thus, even to this day, it is said: ‘On the mountain, the Lord will see.’
22:15	Then the Angel of the Lord called out to Abraham a second time from heaven, saying:
22:16	“By my own self, I have sworn, says the Lord. Because you have done this thing, and have not spared your only begotten son for my sake,
22:17	I will bless you, and I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven, and like the sand which is on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
22:18	And in your offspring, all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you obeyed my voice.”

Third Reading

Exodus:   14: 15- 15: 1

14:15	And the Lord said to Moses: “Why cry out to me? Tell the sons of Israel to continue on.
14:16	Now, lift up your staff, and extend your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the sons of Israel may walk through the midst of the sea on dry ground.
14:17	Then I will harden the heart of the Egyptians, so as to pursue you. And I will be glorified in Pharaoh, and in all his army, and in his chariots, and in his horsemen.
14:18	And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I will be glorified in Pharaoh, and in his chariots, as well as in his horsemen.”
14:19	And the Angel of God, who preceded the camp of Israel, lifting himself up, went behind them. And the pillar of cloud, together with him, left the front for the rear
14:20	and stood between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. And it was a dark cloud, yet it illuminated the night, so that they could not succeed at approaching one another at any time all that night.
14:21	And when Moses had extended his hand over the sea, the Lord took it away by an intense burning wind, blowing throughout the night, and he turned it into dry ground. And the water was divided.
14:22	And the sons of Israel went in through the midst of the dried sea. For the water was like a wall at their right hand and at their left hand.
14:23	And the Egyptians, pursuing them, went in after them, along with all of the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots and horsemen, through the midst of the sea.
14:24	And now the morning watch had arrived, and behold, the Lord, looking down upon the camp of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of cloud, put to death their army.
14:25	And he overturned the wheels of the chariots, and they were carried into the deep. Therefore, the Egyptians said: “Let us flee from Israel. For the Lord fights on their behalf against us.”
14:26	And the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand over the sea, so that the waters may return on the Egyptians, over their chariots and horsemen.”
14:27	And when Moses had extended his hand opposite the sea, it was returned, at first light, to its former place. And the fleeing Egyptians met with the waters, and the Lord immersed them in the midst of the waves.
14:28	And the waters were returned, and they covered the chariots and horsemen of the entire army of Pharaoh, who, in following, had entered into the sea. And not so much as one of them was left alive.
14:29	But the sons of Israel continued directly through the midst of the dried sea, and the waters were to them like a wall on the right and on the left.
14:30	And so the Lord freed Israel on that day from the hand of the Egyptians.
14:31	And they saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea and the great hand that the Lord had exercised against them. And the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in Moses his servant.

Exodus 15

15:1	Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and they said: “Let us sing to the Lord, for he has been gloriously magnified: the horse and the rider he has cast into the sea.

Fourth Reading

Isaiah   54: 5-14

54:5	For the One who made you will rule over you. The Lord of hosts is his name. And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, will be called the God of all the earth.
54:6	For the Lord has called you, like a woman forsaken and mourning in spirit, and like a wife rejected in her youth, said your God.
54:7	For a brief moment, I have forsaken you, and with great pities, I will gather you.
54:8	In a moment of indignation, I have hidden my face from you, for a little while. But with everlasting mercy, I have taken pity on you, said your Redeemer, the Lord.
54:9	For me, it is just as in the days of Noah, to whom I swore that I would no longer bring in the waters of Noah over the earth. Thus have I sworn not to be angry with you, and not to rebuke you.
54:10	For the mountains will be moved, and the hills will tremble. But my mercy will not depart from you, and the covenant of my peace will not be shaken, said the Lord, who has compassion on you.
54:11	O poor little ones, convulsed by the tempest, away from any consolation! Behold, I will set your stones in order, and I will lay your foundation with sapphires,
54:12	and I will make your ramparts out of jasper, and your gates out of sculpted stones, and all your borders out of desirable stones.
54:13	All your children will be taught by the Lord. And great will be the peace of your children.
54:14	And you will be founded in justice. Depart far from oppression, for you will not be afraid. And depart from terror, for it will not approach you.

Fifth Reading

Isaiah   55: 1-11

55:1	All you who thirst, come to the waters. And you who have no money: hurry, buy and eat. Approach, buy wine and milk, without money and without barter.
55:2	Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and expend your labor for what does not satisfy? Listen very closely to me, and eat what is good, and then your soul will be delighted by a full measure.
55:3	Incline your ear and draw near to me. Listen, and your soul will live. And I will make an everlasting covenant with you, by the faithful mercies of David.
55:4	Behold, I have presented him as a witness to the people, as a commander and instructor to the nations.
55:5	Behold, you will call to a nation that you did not know. And nations that did not know you will rush to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel. For he has glorified you.
55:6	Seek the Lord, while he is able to be found. Call upon him, while he is near.
55:7	Let the impious one abandon his way, and the iniquitous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and he will take pity on him, and to our God, for he is great in forgiveness.
55:8	For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways, says the Lord.
55:9	For just as the heavens are exalted above the earth, so also are my ways exalted above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts.
55:10	And in the same manner as rain and snow descend from heaven, and no longer return there, but soak the earth, and water it, and cause it to bloom and to provide seed to the sower and bread to the hungry,
55:11	so also will my word be, which will go forth from my mouth. It will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish whatever I will, and it will prosper in the tasks for which I sent it.

Sixth Reading

Baruch    3: 9-15, 32- 4: 4

3:9	Listen, O Israel, to the commandments of life! Pay attention, so that you may learn prudence!
3:10	How is it, O Israel, that you are in the land of your enemies,
3:11	that you have grown old in a foreign land, that you are defiled with the dead, that you are regarded as among those who are descending into hell?
3:12	You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom.
3:13	For if you had walked in the way of God, you would certainly have lived in everlasting peace.
3:14	Learn where prudence is, where virtue is, where understanding is, so that you may know at the same time where long life and prosperity are, where the light of the eyes and peace are.
3:15	Who has discovered its place? And who has entered its treasure chamber?
3:32	Yet he who knows the universe is familiar with her, and in his foresight he invented her, he who prepared the earth for time without end, and filled it with cattle and four-footed beasts,
3:33	who sends out the light, and it goes, and who summoned it, and it obeyed him in fear.
3:34	Yet the stars have given light from their posts, and they rejoiced.
3:35	They were called, and so they said, “Here we are,” and they shined with cheerfulness to him who made them.
3:36	This is our God, and no other can compare to him.
3:37	He invented the way of all instruction, and delivered it to Jacob his child, and to Israel his beloved.
3:38	After this, he was seen on earth, and he conversed with men.

Baruch 4

4:1	“ ‘This is the book of the commandments of God and of the law, which exists in eternity. All those who keep it will attain to life, but those who have forsaken it, to death.
4:2	Convert, O Jacob, and embrace it, walk in the way of its splendor, facing its light.
4:3	Do not surrender your glory to another, nor your value to a foreign people.
4:4	We have been happy, O Israel, because the things that are pleasing to God have been made clear to us.

Seventh Reading

Ezekiel   36: 16-28

36:16	And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
36:17	“Son of man, the house of Israel lived on their own soil, and they defiled it with their ways and with their intentions. Their way, in my sight, became like the uncleanness of a menstruous woman.
36:18	And so I poured out my indignation upon them, because of the blood which they shed upon the land, and because they defiled it with their idols.
36:19	And I dispersed them among the Gentiles, and they have been scattered among the lands. I have judged them according to their ways and their plans.
36:20	And when they walked among the Gentiles, to whom they had entered, they defiled my holy name, though it was being said about them: ‘This is the people of the Lord,’ and ‘They went forth from his land.’
36:21	But I have spared my holy name, which the house of Israel has defiled among the Gentiles, to whom they entered.
36:22	For this reason, you shall say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: I will act, not for your sake, O house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have defiled among the Gentiles, to whom you entered.
36:23	And I will sanctify my great name, which was defiled among the Gentiles, which you have defiled in their midst. So may the Gentiles know that I am the Lord, says the Lord of hosts, when I will have been sanctified in you, before their eyes.
36:24	Certainly, I will take you away from the Gentiles, and I will gather you together from all the lands, and I will lead you into your own land.
36:25	And I will pour clean water over you, and you shall be cleansed from all your filth, and I will cleanse you from all your idols.
36:26	And I will give to you a new heart, and I will place in you a new spirit. And I will take away the heart of stone from your body, and I will give to you a heart of flesh.
36:27	And I will place my Spirit in your midst. And I will act so that you may walk in my precepts and keep my judgments, and so that you may fulfill them.
36:28	And you shall live in the land that I gave to your fathers. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Epistle

Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans    6: 3-11

6:3	Do you not know that those of us who have been baptized in Christ Jesus have been baptized into his death?
6:4	For through baptism we have been buried with him into death, so that, in the manner that Christ rose from the dead, by the glory of the Father, so may we also walk in the newness of life.
6:5	For if we have been planted together, in the likeness of his death, so shall we also be, in the likeness of his resurrection.
6:6	For we know this: that our former selves have been crucified together with him, so that the body which is of sin may be destroyed, and moreover, so that we may no longer serve sin.
6:7	For he who has died has been justified from sin.
6:8	Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live together with Christ.
6:9	For we know that Christ, in rising up from the dead, can no longer die: death no longer has dominion over him.
6:10	For in as much as he died for sin, he died once. But in as much as he lives, he lives for God.
6:11	And so, you should consider yourselves to be certainly dead to sin, and to be living for God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Holy Gospel According to Mark    16: 1-7

16:1	And when the Sabbath had passed, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought aromatic spices, so that when they arrived they could anoint Jesus.
16:2	And very early in the morning, on the first of the Sabbaths, they went to the tomb, the sun having now risen.
16:3	And they said to one another, “Who will roll back the stone for us, away from the entrance of the tomb?”
16:4	And looking, they saw that the stone was rolled back. For certainly it was very large.
16:5	And upon entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, covered with a white robe, and they were astonished.
16:6	And he said to them, “Do not become frightened. You are seeking Jesus of Nazareth, the Crucified One. He has risen. He is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him.
16:7	But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you into Galilee. There you shall see him, just as he told you.”