The Eighth Kathisma

Antiphon One

Have mercy on me, O God! How men hound me! 2) All day long they harass me, trying to swallow me up! My defamers hound me all day long! How many are they who fight against me, O exalted one! 3) Whenever I am afraid, I trust in you. 4) Listen, you who defame me! I glory in God! In God I trust; I am not afraid. What can mortal man do to me?

5) All day long, they abuse me at every turn; their only thought is to do me harm. 6) They conspire; they lurk; they watch my every move, hoping for my death. 7) Shall their malice go unpunished? In your anger, bring these people down, O God! 8) Store up my tears in your skins and list my hardships in your scroll; you yourself write down my lament! 9) If my enemies retreat when I call on you, then I know God is with me. 10) Listen, you who defame me! I glory in God! Listen, you who defame me! I glory in the Lord! 11) In God I trust; I am not afraid. What can mortal man do to me?

12) I am bound by the vows I made to you, O God most high; I will fulfill them with praise and thanksgiving. 13) O, that you would rescue me from death and save my feet from banishment, that I might walk in your presence in the land of the living.

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for my soul takes refuge in you. In the shadow of your wings I take refuge until the storms of destruction pass. 2) I call to God most high, to God, who does everything for me. 3) He reaches down from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who trample on me; God sends me his steadfast love and faithfulness. 4) Prostrate I lie, surrounded by lions, in the midst of ravenous beasts: men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharpened swords. 5) They spread a net for my feet to ensnare me; they dig a pit for me: May they themselves fall into it!

6) O God! Exalt yourself above the heavens; throughout the earth, your glory! 7) My heart is ready, O God; my heart is ready; I will sing and make music! 8) Wake up, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn! 9) I will give thanks to you among the peoples, O Lord; I will sing a hymn of praise to you among the nations, 10) for your loving kindness towers to the heavens, and your steadfast love, to the sky. 11) O God! Exalt yourself above the heavens; throughout the earth, your glory!

Men of rank, do you really decree what is just? Do you mete out fair judgment to the children of men? 2) Never! Your hearts forever devise what is wicked, and your hands take in the fruits of extortion. 3) The wicked are defiant from birth; liars go wrong from the womb. 4) Their venom is like that of a serpent, like that of a viper that stops up its ears 5) lest it hear the voice of the snake charmer, of that cunning weaver of spells.

6) O God, smash their teeth in their mouths; tear out the fangs of these lions, O Lord! 7) Let them vanish like water that quickly recedes; let them wither like the grass under foot; 8) ravaged by consumption, let them finish their days; like a stillborn child, let them never see the sun. 9) Before they can thrive let them be rooted out like a thornbush; like thorn and thistle let them crackle in the blaze. 10) The just will be glad when they see vengeance done; they will wash from their feet the blood of the wicked. 11) And men will say: So there is a reward for the righteous! There is, then, a God who judges the earth!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: Both now and forever, and unto ages of ages, amen.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia: Glory to you, O God.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia: Glory to you, O God.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia: Glory to you, O God.

Antiphon Two

Rescue me from my enemies, O God; from those who attack me, protect me. 2) Rescue me from evildoers, from blood-thirsty men, save me! 3) See how they lie in wait for my soul; powerful men band together against me. 4) For no offense, for no sin of mine, O Lord, for no guilt of mine, they rush at me to take their stand. Wake up! Come to my aid and see! 5) You, Lord, O God of hosts! O God of Israel! Rise up and punish all the nations; show no mercy to these worthless traitors.

6) They wait till evening; then, howling like dogs, they roam about in the streets. 7) They prowl about looking for something to eat, and if they find nothing they snarl all night. 8) See how they snarl, mouths wide open; their lips are like swords: Who is there to hear us? 9) But you, O Lord, you laugh them to scorn; you deride all the nations! 10) As for me, I sing the glories of your might; I declare your loving mercy every morning, for you have been a fortress for me, my refuge when I am in trouble. 11) O my strength, your praise will I sing! Yes, my God, you are my stronghold, my kind and loving God. O, my strength, to you I turn. 12) Yes, God is my fortress; the God whom I love is coming to my aid. 13) God will let me see the end of those who lie in wait for me.

14) O God! Slaughter them! Lest they seduce my people, let your might send them reeling; put them down, O our shield, our Lord! 15) Sin is in their mouths, on their lips; let them be trapped by their pride, for their blasphemies, for the lies they tell under oath. 16) Destroy them in your anger; destroy them until nothing is left of them! Let them understand that God is master over Jacob and throughout the world.

In your anger you deserted us, O God! In your rage you turned your back on us! 2) You rocked the earth and split it open; cracked and crumbling, it shuddered horrendously. 3) You made your people suffer hardships; you gave us a wine that made us stagger. 4) Now, raise a banner for those who revere you, to rally them against the archers' attack. 5) Come and deliver your beloved; stretch forth your right hand and answer me.

6) From his holy place, God made this promise, that in triumph I would divide up Shechem and portion out the valley of Succoth; 7) Gilead and Manasseh are mine; Ephraim my helmet and Judah my scepter; 8) Moab is my washbasin; upon Edom I plant my sandal, and over the Philistines I shout in triumph! 9) Who is there now to lead me to that bastion, to set me on the throne of Edom?

10) But you, O God, can you really have rejected us? You no longer go forth with our armies, O God. 11) Grant us help against the foe, for the help of man is worthless. 12) With God we shall be victorious; he himself will bring our foes to nothing!

Listen, O God, to my cries; attend to my prayer! 2) From the edge of the world beneath I call to you; I am losing heart completely. Lead me away from here to that lofty mountain. 3) O, that you would be my refuge, a towering fortress against my foe. 4) Let me dwell in your eternal tent and hide in the shelter of your wings.

5) O God, if only you would hear my prayer and give me the inheritance of those who revere your name! 6) Lengthen the king's days; make his years endless generations. 7) May he ever sit enthroned before God! Bid love and truth protect him! 8) Then will I sing to your name without end, fulfilling my vows day after day.

Glory: Both now:
Alleluia:

Antiphon Three

Only in God is my soul at rest, and from him comes my deliverance. 2) He alone is the rock of my salvation, my stronghold; never will I stumble. 3) How long will you assault a man, will all of you knock him down, as if he were a leaning wall, a tottering fence? 4) They fully intend to topple him from his place of honor, delighting in their lies. 5) With their mouths, they bless indeed, but inwardly their hearts are full of cursing.

6) Only in God is my soul at rest, and from him comes my hope. He alone is the rock of my salvation, my stronghold; never will I stumble. 7) My deliverance depends on the most high god; the glorious one is my mountain fortress, God, my refuge. 8) At all times trust in him, my people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

9) Lowborn men are but a breath; the highborn, a delusion. On scales they weigh less than a leaf; together, less than vapor. 10) Rely not on extortion; take no pride in stolen goods. Put no hope in wealth; when God speaks, repent from your hearts. 11) One thing God has spoken; two things I have heard: 12) Power belongs to God, and: Yours, O Lord, is loving kindness. You yourself repay each man according to his deeds.

O God, you are my God; at early morning I look for you; my soul thirsts for you; for you my body craves, like dry land, weary, without water. 2) So I gaze on you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory. 3) How much sweeter your loving mercy, than my very life and lips that praise you!

4) I will bless you all my life, lifting my hands as I invoke your name. 5) As at a banquet shall my soul gorge itself; on my lips, joy; praise in my mouth. 6) In bed I remember you; as I lie awake I reflect on you, 7) mindful of how you helped me, and I rejoice in the safety of your wings. 8) My soul presses close to you; your right hand supports me.

9) As for those who seek my life, may they go into the depths of the earth. 10) Let them be put to the sword, left as the prey of jackals! 11) But the king shall rejoice in God; whoever swears by him will glory when liars' mouths are silenced.

Hear my voice, O God, when I complain to you; from the threats of the enemy protect my life. 2) Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from that noisy crowd of evildoers. 3) For they sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their words like deadly arrows. 4) From ambush they shoot at the innocent; suddenly they shoot, afraid of nothing. 5) They encourage each other in their evil scheming, conspiring in secret to lay their snares. Plotting their evil, they say: 6) Who will see us? Who will discover this perfect crime?

He will discover it, the one who searches the innermost man, the very depths of the heart. 7) God will fire his arrows at them, inflicting on them sudden staggering wounds. 8) Their tongues shall be their downfall, and those who look on shall recoil in horror. 9) Then, all men will stand in awe; they will tell others what God has done, and they will understand why he has done it. 10) But the just will rejoice in the Lord; they will fly to him for refuge! And all the upright will glory!

Glory: Both now:
Alleluia:

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