Byzantine Old Testament Readings for Sunday Vespers

 

Introduction


In the Byzantine Rite, the Old Testament is only liturgically read at Vespers and (on a few major feasts) Royal Hours. The traditional calendar only gives Vespers readings for feasts and for the Great Fast: on days outside the Fast when no feasts are being celebrated, there are no readings at Vespers. In an attempt to remedy this, Fr. Theodore Pulcini of the Antiochian Orthodox Church arranged sets of Old Testament readings to be read at Sunday Vespers throughout the year, with the readings chosen due to their relation to the selected Gospel reading for each Sunday (though, oddly, he typically selected only two readings, whereas Byzantine festal Vespers readings come in sets of three). These readings have been incorporated—as optional—in Fr. David Petras’ yearly Typikon for the Ruthenians; in addition, Fr. Petras has listed readings from the Syrian tradition. Below, I have transcribed these citations for ease of reference. As in Fr. Petras’ Typika, P stands for Fr. Pulcini’s proposed readings, and S stands for readings from the Syrian tradition.


On the rare Sundays that have Vespers readings on the traditional Byzantine calendar, these readings are included here and italicized.

It should be noted that Fr. Pulcini’s proposed readings are tied to specific Gospel readings, rather than to specific Sundays after Pentecost. (In fact, Fr. Pulcini's original book of proposals groups the readings by Evangelist rather than by the typical divisions of the liturgical year: thus he has the "Sundays of Matthew," "Sundays of Mark," "Sundays of Luke," and "Sundays of John.")  Thus, after the “Lukan Jump” following the Exaltation of the Cross—when the Epistle and Gospel readings often become disconnected—the Old Testament reading is tied solely to the Gospel. For instance, if, on the 20th Sunday After Pentecost, the prescribed Gospel reading is from the 23rd Sunday After Pentecost, then the proposed Old Testament reading is the reading for 23rd Sunday, not for the 20th Sunday.

 

I am also unsure as to how the Syrian calendar of readings changes after the Exaltation of the Cross. For now, I have omitted them from this list beginning with the 15th Sunday After Pentecost. Once again, if I am able to determine the proper order of the Syrian readings, I will update this list.


Fr. Pulcini’s proposed readings were originally published in: Theodore Pulcini, Old Testament Lectionary for Use in the Byzantine Tradition at Great Vespers on Saturday Evening (2005)

These readings were reprinted in: Book of Thematic Readings (Fairfax, VA: Eastern Christian Publications, 2020)

Edit (1/28/2024): I was able to briefly glance a copy of Fr. Pulcini's 2005 book; thus I was able to add his proposed readings for the 15th and 16th Sundays After Pentecost, as well as give a brief description of his division of readings.



Triodion


  • Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee (2 Tim 3:10-15; Lk 18:10-14)

    • P: Sir 3:17-27; Sir 10:7-18

    • S: Ex 16:12-20; Jer 50:20-27; Is 43:11-21

  • Sunday of the Prodigal Son (1 Cor 6:12-20; Lk 15:11-32)

    • P: Is 55:1-7; Hos 14:1-9

    • 2 Sam 1:17-27; Job 14:1-2; Dan 9:1-11

  • Meatfare Sunday (1 Cor 8:8-9:2; Mt 25:31-46)

    • P: Is 26:20-27:13; Joel 1:13-2:13

    • S: Dt 34:1-12; 2 Sam 12:15-25; Ez 37:1-14

  • Cheesefare Sunday (Rom 13:11b-14:4; Mt 6:14-21)

    • P: Sir 28:1-7; Is 58:1-11

    • S: Gen 1:1-5; Job 20:1-23; Prv 20:1-20

  • Sunday of Orthodoxy (Heb 11:24-26, 32-12:2a; Jn 1:43-51)

    • P: Dt 5:1-5, 18:15-19; Is 42:1-12

    • S: Num 12:1-16; Job 19:1-27 (or Jos 4:15-24); Hab 2:6-20

  • Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas (Heb 1:10-2:3; Mk 2:1-12)1

    • P: Jer 31:27-34; Jon 3:1-10; Is 49:1-6

    • S: Ex 8:1-15; Job 12:1-15 (or Prv 11:17-26); Is 58:1-11

  • Sunday of the Holy Cross (Heb 4:14-5:6; Mk 8:34b-9:1)

    • P: Sir 2:1-9; Is 50:4-9

    • S: Gen 37:12-28; 1 Sam 17:2-9, 32, 37, 40, 42, 49-51; Job 21:17-26

  • Sunday of St. John Climacus (Heb 6:13-20; Mk 9:17-31)2

    • P: 1 Sam 17:1-11, 32-51; Is 52:13-53:6

    • S: Gen 41:14-31; Jgs 16:4-21 (or Jgs 16:23-30); Hos 14:1-9

  • Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt (Heb 9:11-14; Mk 10:32b-45)3

    • P: Jgs 9::1-25, 50-56; Is 53:7-12

    • S: Gen 48:8-22; Dan 3:13-28; Lam 1:1-11

  • Palm Sunday (Phil 4:4-9; Jn 12:1-8)

    • Gen 49:1-2, 8-12; Zeph 3:14-19; Zec 9:9-15


Pentecostarion


  • Pascha (Acts 1:1-8; Jn 1:1-17)

    • Gen 1:1-13; Is 60:1-16; Ex 12:1-11; Jon 1:1-4:11; Jos 5:10-15; Ex 13:20-15:19; Zeph 3:8-15; 1 Kgs 17:8-24; Is 61:10-62:5; Gen 22:1-18; Is 61:1-9; 2 Kgs 4:8-37; Is 63:11-64:5; Jer 31:31-34; Dan 3:1-90

  • Thomas Sunday (Acts 5:12-20; Jn 20:19-31)

    • P: Ex 4:1-9; Num 14:2-24

    • S: Ex 19:3-9; Amos 9:11-15; Is 26:1-8

  • Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women (Acts 6:1-7; Mk 15:43-16:8)

    • P: Ex 40:1-15; 1 Sam 16:1-13

    • S: Lev 19:1-4, 9-15; Wis 1:12-2:6, 21-24; Is 63:7-9

  • Sunday of the Paralytic (Acts 9:32-42; Jn 5:1-15)

    • P: Mic 4:1-7; Zeph 3:11-20

    • S: Ex 17:8-13; Jgs 5:1-7; Is 49:8-13

  • Sunday of the Samaritan Woman (Acts 11:19-26,29-30; Jn 4:5-42)

    • P: Gen 24:1-4, 9-51; Ez 47:1-9

    • S: Ex 18:1-10; Wis 7:1-11; Hab 3:1-13

  • Sunday of the Man Born Blind (Acts 16:16-34; Jn 9:1-38)

    • P: Is 42:5-18; Is 29:13-19

    • S: Dt 11:1-8; Wis 4:15-20; Zec 8:1-8

  • Sunday of the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council (Acts 20:16-18a, 28-36; Jn 17:1-13)

    • Gen 14:14-20; Dt 1:8-11, 15-17; Dt 10:14-21

  • Pentecost (Acts 2:1-11; Jn 7:37-52, 8:12)

    • Num 11:16-17, 24-29; Joel 2:23-32; Ez 36:24-28

  • Sunday of All Saints (Heb 11:33-12:2a; Mt 10:32-33,37-38, 19:27-30)

    • P: Gen 12:1-9; Sir 44:1-15


Weeks After Pentecost


  • 2nd Sunday After Pentecost (Rom 2:10-16; Mt 4:18-23)

    • P: Ex 3:1-15; Is 6:1-8

    • S: Gen 18:1-8; Ex 3:1-8; Is 6:1-4

  • 3rd Sunday After Pentecost (Rom 5:1-10; Mt 6:22-34)

    • P: Dt 11:1-15; 1 Kgs 10:1-10, 13-23

    • S: Num 10:-18; 1 Kgs 17:1-6; Ez 34:1-2, 9-10, 22-29

  • 4th Sunday After Pentecost (Rom 6:18-23; Mt 8:5-13)

    • P: 1 Kgs 17:8-24; Mal 1:6-11

    • S: Num 5:5-10; Sir 8:1-10; Is 48:12-22

  • 5th Sunday After Pentecost4 (Rom 10:1-10; Mt 8:28-9:1)

    • P: 2 Kgs 4:38-44; Is 40:1-11 [2017]

    • P: 1 Sam 16:14-23; Zec 12:10, 13:1-2 [2022]

    • S: Ex 32:7-14; Sir 9:1-15; Is 14:1-11

  • 6th Sunday After Pentecost5 (Rom 12:6-14; Mt 9:1-8)

    • P: Jer 31:27-34; Jon 3:1-10

    • S: Ex 32:30-35; Sir 11:1-14; Jer 10:1-7

  • 7th Sunday After Pentecost (Rom 15:1-7; Mt 9:27-35)

    • P: Ex 3:4-10, 4:10-16; Is 35:1-10

    • S: Ex 32:30-35; Sir 11:1-4; Jer 10:1-7

  • 8th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 1:10-18; Mt 14:14-22)

    • P: 2 Kgs 4:38-44; Is 40:1-11

    • S: Num 15:32-36; Sir 13:1-21; Jer 2:26-62

  • 9th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 3:9-17; Mt 14:22-34)

    • P: Ps 106 (107):1-30; Ps 88 (89):1-136

    • S: Num 16:25-33; Sir 18:19-23; Jer 3:12-17

  • 10th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 4:9-16; Mt 17:14-23a)

    • P: Num 14:2-11; Dan 6:1-23

    • S: Num 22:2-13; Sir 25:1-4, 9-10; Jer 5:1-6

  • 11th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 9:2-12; Mt 18:23-35)

    • P: Dt 15:1-11; Jer 5:1-3

    • S: Num 22:20-31; 1 Sam 10:17-25; Is 5:1-7

  • 12th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 15:1-11; Mt 19:16-26)

    • P: Dt 5:1-22; Sir 31:1-7

    • S: Num 24:1-9; 1 Sam 12:1-8; Sir 26:13-19a, 27:14-22

  • 13th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 16:13-24; Mt 21:33-42)

    • P: Gen 37:1-28, 39:1-4; Is 28:14-22

    • S: Num 25:1-9; 1 Sam 16:12-23; Is 28:14-22

  • 14th Sunday After Pentecost (1 Cor 1:21-2:4; Mt 22:1-14)

    • P: Jgs 13:1-5, 24-25, 14:1-20 Is 25:1-9

    • S: Num 27:1-11; 1 Sam 18:1-9; Is 29:13-24

  • 15th Sunday After Pentecost (2 Cor 4:6-15; Mt 22:35-46)

    • P: Dt 6:1-9; 2 Sam 7:8-16

  • 16th Sunday After Pentecost (2 Cor 6:1-10; Mt 25:14-30)

    • P: Gen 29:13-30, 30:25-43; Gen 39:1-23

  • 17th Sunday After Pentecost7 (2 Cor 6:16b-7:1; Mt 15:21-28)

    • P: Is 60:18-23; Is 66:18-23

  • 18th Sunday After Pentecost (2 Cor 9:6-11; Lk 5:1-11)

    • P: Jgs 6:7-24, 33-40; 1 Sam 3:1-18

  • 19th Sunday After Pentecost (2 Cor 11:31-12:9; Lk 6:31-36)

    • P: Dt 10:12-22; 1 Sam 24:1-13

  • 20th Sunday After Pentecost (Gal 1:11-19; Lk 7:11-16)

    • P: 2 Kgs 4:8-37; Is 57:14[17]-218

  • 21st Sunday After Pentecost (Gal 2:16-20; Lk 8:5-15)

    • P: Is 55:6-11; Ez 2:1-3:11

  • 22nd Sunday After Pentecost (Gal 6:11-18; Lk 16:19-31)

    • P: Wis 3:1-9; Ez 18:20-32

  • 23rd Sunday After Pentecost (Eph 2:4-10; Lk 8:26-39)

    • P: 1 Sam 16:14-23; Zec 12;10, 13:1-2 (or Tob 6:1-7, 13, 8:1-3)

  • 24th Sunday After Pentecost (Eph 2:14-22; Lk 8:41-56)

    • P: 1 Kgs 17:8-24; 2 Kgs 4:8-37 (or Is 38:1-20)

  • 25th Sunday After Pentecost (Eph 4:1-6; Lk 10:25-37)

    • P: Lev 19:13-18; Prv 3:21-35

  • 26th Sunday After Pentecost (Eph 5:8b-19; Lk 12:16-21)

    • P: Eccl 2:1-11; Sir 11:10-27

  • 27th Sunday After Pentecost (Eph 6:10-17; Lk 13:10-17)

    • P: Sir 18:1-14; Is 29:13-24

  • 28th Sunday After Pentecost (Col 1:12-18; Lk 14:16-24)

    • P: Jgs 13:1-5, 24-25, 14:1-20; Is 25:1-9

  • 29th Sunday After Pentecost (Col 3:4-11; Lk 17:12-19)

    • P: Num 12:1-15; 2 Kgs 5:1-19

  • 30th Sunday After Pentecost (Col 3:12-16; Lk 18:18-27)

    • P: Dt 5:1-22; Sir 31:1-7

  • 31st Sunday After Pentecost (1 Tim 1:15-17; Lk 18:35-43)

    • P: Jgs 16:1-30; 2 Kgs 6:18-23

  • Zacchaeus Sunday (1 Tim 4:9-15; Lk 19:1-10)

    • P: Gen 18:1-14; Ex 33:7-23




  • Sunday Before the Exaltation of the Cross (Gal 6:11-18; Jn 3:13-17)

    • P: Num 21:4-9; Wis 16:5-13

  • Sunday After the Exaltation of the Cross (Gal 2:16-20; Mk 8:34-9:1)

    • P: Sir 2:1-9; Is 50:4-9

  • Sunday Before Nativity (Heb 11:9-10, 17-23, 32-40; Mt 1:1-25)

    • Gen 14:14-20; Dt 1:8-11, 15-17; Dt 10:14-21

    • P: Sir 4:1-15; Is 11:1-9

    • S: Gen 46:8-27; 1 Kgs 9:3-7; Is 7:14-15, 11:1-9

  • Sunday Before Theophany (2 Tim 4:5-8; Mk 1:1-8)

    • P: Is 40:1-11; Mal 3:1-5

  • Sunday After Theophany (Eph 4:7-13; Mt 4:12-17)

    • P: Is 9:1-7; Jon 3:1-10

       

       

1These are the readings for the Sunday; St. Gregory also has his own readings: Heb 7:26-8:2; Jn 10:9-16.

2These are the readings for the Sunday: St. John also has his own readings: Eph 5:8b-18; Mt 4:25-5:12a.

3These are the readings for the Sunday: St. Mary also has her own readings: Gal 3:23-29; Lk 7:36-50.

4Note: different years of the Typikon list two different sets of Pulcini readings for this Sunday. The 2023 Typikon lists both sets as options.

5Generally, the Feast of the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils (Sunday between July 13 and 19) will fall on either the 6th or 7th Sunday After Pentecost. No Syrian readings are listed for whichever Sunday that feast falls on; the other of the two Sundays has the set of readings that appears repeated here.

6The Septuagint numbering of the Psalms—which the Vulgate also follows—differs from the numbering used by the Masoretic Text, the the main form of the Hebrew Old Testament used today. Modern Bible translations—beginning in the 20th century, generally—follow the Hebrew numbering, while older translations, as well as most Orthodox Bibles, use the Greek numbering. The first number is the Greek numbering, while the second is the Hebrew numbering.

7The Sundays Before and After the Exaltation of the Cross overwrite the Sundays After Pentecost readings, and, after the Sunday After the Exaltation, in most years, the Epistle and Gospel readings become disconnected (the “Lukan Jump”). Due to this, a few of the Gospel readings around the 15th-18th Sundays After Pentecost are often skipped during the liturgical year. None of the Typika I have (2017, 2022, 2023) include these readings, so I do not know what Pulcini’s suggested Vesper readings are for those days (since his Vespers readings are tied to the Gospel reading, not the number of Sundays after Pentecost). The Syriac readings also change their ordering after the Exaltation of the Cross, and I have not yet figured out the criteria for their arrangement, so they are not listed here.

8Different years of the Typikon give different starting verses for this reading.

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