“Those who trust in him will understand the truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, because grace and mercy are for his chosen ones. As for the hypocrites, they will receive the punishment they deserve, as they have despised the righteous and turned away from the Lord” (Wisdom 3:9-10).

[In a very little while we will remember You and glorify Your name, O Lord Jesus.
Let us leave all our bad habits and purify our hearts in the name of the Lord] (Monday Psali).
“Be careful to be humble and brave, and then your soul will escape the influence of demons” (Saint Nilus the Monk).

The evil one examines you from all angles, constantly watching where he can strike you, hoping to find a vulnerable spot ready for attack. (Saint Gregory the Theologian)

Explanation of the Readings

The readings of tonight are a final warning against rejecting the salvation that is about to be proclaimed tomorrow on Maundy Thursday and Great Friday, and also a revelation that salvation is the economy of the Father and the Son, and the glory of those who accept this salvation.

Therefore, in the readings of tonight, signs of rejection of salvation and its dangers are emphasized:
“And many of them said, “He has a demon and is mad. ” (First Hour Gospel)
” and when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money, he was seeking an opportunity to hand it over in a trick ” (Third Hour Gospel)

“But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him.” (Gospel of the sixth hour)
” the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.” (Gospel of the ninth hour)

And we encounter souls that:
Reject His authority. (First hour)
Do not appreciate His love. (Third hour)
Miss His glory. (Sixth hour)
And the works of His Father. (Ninth hour)
And His heavenly light. (Eleventh hour)

But they are also readings of the Father and the Son’s economy for salvation:
” This command I have received from My Father.”.” (First Hour Gospel).
” And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” (Sixth Hour Gospel).
“My Father, who has given it to me, is greater than all.” (Ninth Hour Gospel).
“The Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.”

(Eleventh Hour Gospel).
And the reward for those who accept his salvation:
” Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” (Third Hour Gospel).

” If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came ” (Gospel of the Ninth Hour).
“And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.” (Gospel of the Eleventh Hour).

The First Hour of Thursday Eve

The readings of this hour speak about:
His economy and the glory of His salvation. (Prophecies).
His prayer to the Father. (Psalms).
His authority on the cross. (Gospel).

Prophecy – Prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 43: 5-11)

The prophecy comes at the end of the book of Ezekiel, which:
Tells of the departure of the Lord from His house and city (Ezekiel 10, 11).
And the destruction of the external enemy (25-32).
And His promise of righteous shepherds in stead of the wicked (ch.34).
Finally, it proclaims His glory once again in His temple and among His people.

” The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple…. Now let them put their harlotry and the carcasses of their kings far away from Me, and I will dwell in their midst forever.”

This prophecy is accompanied by the path of Christ’s suffering, linking His presence and glory to His suffering, as Saint Methodius of Olympus said: “The Church grows day by day in stature and beauty through its cooperation and union with the Logos who descended to us until now and continues to descend to us in memorial to of His suffering.” The people disregarded God’s choice, His call, and His love, becoming like counterfeit metals that needed fire for purification (First prophecy). Their contempt and deviation in life manifested in the prevalence of injustice and bribery (Second prophecy).

Psalm 68:1, 16

“Save me, O God! For the waters flood my soul. According to Your abundant compassion, look upon me”

This psalm is one of the psalms that spoke about the sufferings of Christ and His glory, following Psalm 22.

David was a symbol of Christ, and there are many verses from this psalm that the New Testament applied to Christ:
(Verse 4) is mentioned in John 15:25.
(Verse 9) is mentioned in John 2:17, Romans 15:3.
(Verse 21) is mentioned in Matthew 27:34.
(Verses 22, 23) are mentioned in Romans 11:9, 10.
It is a companion to Psalm 22, both starting with the sufferings of Christ and ending with His glory. Added to this are the prophecies about the destruction of Israel for crucifying Christ.

The link between the psalm and the Gospel (Father Louka Sidarous):
” Save me, O God! For the waters flood my soul…”
The plots have been completed, the death sentence is imminent, and the waters of death have reached the soul.

And the Lord Christ crucified Himself for the world before the world crucified Him, and He laid Himself down with His divine authority ” I have power to lay it down ” before they laid hands on Him and before they issued the death sentence in their trials based on deceit, false accusations, and fabrication.
And the Lord at this hour says: “The Father loves me because I lay down my life for the sheep.”
The waters reached the soul but had no power over it. Because death could not hold Him as He is life… Yet, despite the weakness of death, He says, “I lay down My life”

Gospel (John 10:17-21)

The Gospel concludes with the authority of Christ in His crucifixion, that He was crucified by His own full will and acceptance of the cross was His economy with the Father for our salvation:
” Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

The Third Hour of Thursday Eve

The readings speak of the repeated calls for repentance for salvation (prophecy), which the disciple did not benefit from (Psalms), and was accepted joyfully and generously by the woman pouring fragrant oil (Gospel).

Prophecy – Prophet Amos (Amos 4:4)

This prophecy from Amos explains God’s repeated calls to His people for repentance in various ways, hence the repetition of the phrase “Yet you did not return to Me, says the Lord” five times in this text. God also rejects the formal life in which worship is combined with sin, and where man thinks that his offerings and tithes can erase his sins.

” At Gilgal multiply transgression; Bring your sacrifices every morning, Your tithes every three days.Moreover,outside they read things of the law”

And here He calls at the end of His speech for a sincere meeting ‘So prepare to call on your God, O Israel,’ and he predicts the coming of the Lord, the incarnate Word who created everything and who alone is able to renew his nature.

[As Father Tadros Yacoub Malaty says: The text in the Septuagint translation reads: ‘He who establishes thunder and creates the spirit announces his Christ to man.’ And many fathers, like Saint Augustine, see this text as a clear prophecy of the Messianic era, as the new Israel prepares to meet its God through the Father’s revelation of His Christ to man, accepting Him as mystery of reconciliation between The Father and Man.]”

The Psalm (Psalm 54:18, 1)

“His words were softened above oil, and they are arrows. Give ear to my prayer, O God. And do not despise my supplication”
[Most commentators agree that David wrote this Psalm during Absalom’s rebellion. Here we see him in great sorrow over the betrayal of Ahithophel. David is seen as a symbol of Christ suffering from the rebellion of His people against Him, and the betrayal of Ahithophel as a representation of Judas’ betrayal, both ending in self-strangulation.] (Father Antonios Fikri)

The Psalm also declares that prayer and supplication are the shield and protection against human betrayals and conspiracies.
The link between the Psalm and the Gospel (Father Luke Sidarous)
His words were softened above oil and they are arrows…

The words of this psalm are so deep and full of hidden secrets! For this reason, the Church has given it a special melody (the Syrian melody) to sing the psalm of “your throne, O God, “Beik Ethronos.” The psalm provides an opportunity to contemplate the depths of the events that took place at the house of Simon, presenting a contrast between the attitude of Judas the traitor and the attitude of the sinful woman who poured fragrant oil on the head of the Savior. While we see that Judas’ words were harsh about the fragrant oil (it seems his words were more about the cost), we see that the sinful woman wasted the fragrant oil (she poured it) by breaking the flask. While Judas was reproaching the woman, looking at the price of the fragrant oil, she was looking at the feet of the Lord that had saved her from the path of sin. While Judas the traitor had lost all feelings of sacred love, we see feelings of love apparent in the sinful woman, as she disregards everything to show the love that is precious in the sight of God.

Give ear to my prayer, O God. And do not despise my supplication

This is the voice of the woman at this hour and her prayer is the poured fragrant oil… How beautiful is this prayer and how far it is from words! And the Lord listened, heard, and immortalized this prayer for her as a lasting memorial in the Gospel. The soul that says to the Lord, ” Give ear to my prayer, O God,” should not be confused by the words of Judas and the reproaches of others.

Gospel (Mark 14: 3-11)

The Gospel reveals a comparison:
Between the value of the Lord in the eyes of the woman and in the eyes of the disciple, ” a woman came having an alabaster flask of very costly oil of spikenard. Then she broke the flask and poured it on His head…. and when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money”

Between what the woman did with the Lord and what the disciple did “she broke the flask and poured it on His head… he was seeking an opportunity to hand it over in a trick.”
The Lord refutes their arguments about the poor by saying that if we serve the poor without the presence of God in their lives, their service becomes a social activity and may harm them more than benefit them. But if we serve them through the presence of God in our lives as servants first, our goal also becomes that God be first in their lives and that they be spiritually satisfied with the Lord while meeting their needs, as by the Apostle Paul praised the giving of the Corinthian church.

“imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God.” (2 Corinthians 8:6-7).

The Sixth Hour of Thursday Eve

The readings of this hour speak about:
The different opportunities for repentance and salvation. (Prophecy)
And the danger of continuing in evil. (Psalms)
Thus, man deprives himself of the glory of God. (Gospel)

Prophecy – Prophet Amos (Amos 3:1-11)

Prophecy reveals the various opportunities that God uses or allows for the salvation of humanity from destruction, and for accepting salvation and obtaining eternal life.
These different opportunities come in personal and collective forms.

He walks with us on the path of daily life so that we may realize His presence with us (Luke 24:32).
“Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?”
He is the lion from the tribe of Judah, who proclaimed salvation through His cross. Will we allow Him to snatch us from destruction?
“Will a lion roar from his lair in the forest if he has no prey? will a lion’s whelp cry out from his den if he has nothing?” (Verse 4)

He saves me from trials and allows me to go through trials. Will I hold on to Him as my savior?
“Will a bird fall into a snare on the earth, where there is no trap for it? Will a snare spring up from the earth, if it has caught nothing at all? ” (Verse 5)
He uses what happens to nations and peoples for the salvation of all from destruction:
” If a trumpet is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid? If there is calamity in a city, will not the Lord have done it?” (Verse 6)

The calamity or evil is not intended to be created by the Lord, but:
[As Father John of Damascus says: These words do not mean that God is the cause of evil, but that the word “evil” is used in two ways, with two meanings. Sometimes it means what is evil by its nature, that is, contrary to virtue and contrary to the will of God, and sometimes it means what is evil and distressing to our senses, such as sorrows and disasters. These may seem evil because they are painful, even though they are actually beneficial, as they are for the wise a trumpet for change and salvation. The scripture says that “God is the source of them.”

As Father Theodore says: When divine wisdom speaks to humans, it speaks to them in their language and human emotions. The doctor cuts or cauterizes those suffering from ulcers for the sake of their health, and yet those unable to bear it may see it as evil.]

But how beautiful it is to say afterwards that those who fear God do not need all this, but God reveals to them the secrets of His economy, the depths of His love, and His will for their salvation.”
“The Lord God does not do anything without announcing His discipline to His servants the prophets.”
Therefore, it is also said: “But His secret counsel is with the upright.” (Proverbs 3:32), “The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.” (Psalm 25:14).

Psalm 139:1, 2

“Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; Preserve me from violent men, Who plan evil things in their hearts; They continually gather together for war.”

[This psalm begins with the word: “To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.” And St. Augustine comments: “To the end: The only end that you seek is the one presented to us by the Apostle: “For Christ is the end of the law ” (Romans 10:4). The Lord Christ is of the seed of David, not according to the divinity by which He is David’s creator, but according to the flesh. The psalm is presented to the Son of David Himself; it is the voice of His body, that is, the Church.]

That is, this prayer is the prayer of the Son of God acting on behalf of humanity in the face of the evil of the world and the fight against the wicked, and it is the prayer with which He entered into the death of the cross to teach us how to face our trials and tribulations.
The link between the psalm and the Gospel (Father Luke Sidarus)[11]

Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; Preserve me from violent men…

The psalm reveals here what was brewing in the heart of the traitor Judas and the Pharisees:
Judas is an evil man and the Pharisees think evil from their hearts,
and Judas is an unjust man and the Pharisees are preparing to fight the Lord without justification.
But do you see how the Lord’s stance was towards them?

The Lord says with all sincerity: Save me and rescue me. Isn’t this the way the Lord has set for the oppressed in all the earth? Do you see how the Lord was speaking to the group of evildoers at that moment? The Lord says in the Gospel of this hour: “Believe in the light so that you may become children of the light.” The Lord does not seek the destruction even of the wicked oppressors, but He wants to transfer them from darkness to light.

The Lord revealed the cause of evil and injustice in the hearts of these evildoers when He recalled the prophecy of Isaiah: “The God of this age has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts”

Christ calls them to the light of faith as a solution to their problem… but many will still not believe in Him for the same reason that the Lord explained in the Gospel, ” for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” (John 12:43).

The Gospel (John 12:36-43)

The gospel concludes with the consequences of rejecting the various and repeated opportunities for salvation offered by the Son of God, resulting in the terrifying deprivation of the glory of God. The reason is the preoccupation with the glory of men over the glory of God. This happened after the Jews rejected the calls of the Savior and His crucifixion, leading to the destruction of their temple and city, and their dispersion throughout the earth:

” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them. But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him…. Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”

The Ninth Hour of Thursday Eve

The readings speak of the consequences: those who rejected their savior (prophecy), those who resisted His love (psalms), and the glory of those who accepted the word of salvation (gospel).

Prophecy – Prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 20:27-33)

The Lord reveals His identity as Adonai, who will appear to those who rejected him as a fair judge over all the earth. He will condemn the hardness of hearts, the persistence in evil, and their alignment with the evil world. “Do you defile yourselves with the lawlessness of your fathers and commit after their abomination?” Therefore, the word “Adonai the Lord” was repeated three times and another fourth time as “the Lord God.”

The hardest consequence of continuing in evil is the absence of the presence of God, as stated in the previous hour’s Gospel “and He hid from them” and here it says that He will not answer them “As I live, says the Lord, I will not answer you.” And if souls do not realize the time for repentance, they will face the time of final judgment: “Therefore, as I live,” says the Lord, “I will reign over with mighty hand, with a high arm, and with anger poured out.”

Psalm (Psalm 7:1, 2)

” O Lord my God, in You I put my trust; Save me from all those who persecute me; And deliver me,

Lest they tear me like a lion, Rending me in pieces, while there is none to deliver.”

Here, the prophet David cries out due to the multitude of his resistors and pursuers, whether from King Saul or his son Absalom, symbolizing the suffering Christ from the resistance of the leaders and their pursuit of Him. He says “those who persecute” in the plural form and “like a lion” in the singular form, indicating an announcement of a single enemy to mankind, “the lion who prowls seeking whom he may devour,” and who incites many against the Son of God and against the Church.

Therefore, we see in the title of the psalm the word “shiggaion,” and some see it as meaning “a loud cry,” occurring in a situation of imminent danger, or in a state of confusion, or under the pressure of severe pain, meaning that this psalm is a prophecy about the suffering of Christ due to the Jews’ resistance to Him.

The link between the Psalm and the Gospel (Father Luke Sidarous)
O Lord my God, in You I put my trust…
The Lord offers Himself in dependence and surrender because He made Himself of no reputation, but He affirms the fact of the weakness of the enemy before His divine authority.

Save me from all those who persecute me; And deliver me,…
And when He sought the persecuted, He became persecuted instead of them, look to Him crying out with the words of the Psalm saying: ” Save me from all those who persecute me; And deliver me”

The Lamb without blemish or spot redeems the sheep of the flock… And even though He cries out to the Father “Save me lest they snatch my soul,” He affirms in the Gospel ” no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” (John 10:29).
Like a lion…

The psalm’s expression of the wicked enemy as a “lion” perfectly matches the Apostle Peter’s description of Satan as “your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion”. It is important to note that he is not a lion with actual power and authority, but is like a lion, because the Lord Jesus has defeated his strength and rendered him powerless, becoming a mockery without strength, like a lion devoid of power and unable to intimidate anyone, but rather a laughingstock. Reflect on what is written ” Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

The Gospel (John 10:29-38).

Here we also see the strong resistance from the Jewish leaders against the Lord, “the Jews took up stones again to stone Him”. But it also shows the glory of those who accept the word of salvation, ” If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God ? ”

The Eleventh Hour of Thursday Eve

The readings of this night are concluded:
With the absence of wisdom, light, and knowledge from the resistors. (Prophecy).
And its declaration to the lovers of God. (Psalms).
And the radiance of divine light and eternal life. (Gospel).

Prophecy – Jeremiah the Prophet (Jeremiah 8:4-10)

In their insistence on evil, they did not know the Lord, and they lost enlightenment, and the law became meaningless to them, meaning they only clung to the form, and the law did not lead them to the knowledge of God.

“But my people do not know the judgments of the Lord. “How can you say we are wise and the law of the lord is with us? the lying pen becomes vanity for the scribes.”

Psalm (Psalm 61:4, 1)

“In god is my salvation and my glory; He is the God of my help and my hope is in God. For He is my God and my Savior, my protector; I shall be shaken no more.”

“Salvation, my rock” = are names for Christ the Savior (Luke 2:30, 1 Corinthians 4:10) (Fr. Antonios Fakhry)

[St. Basil the Great sees the word “salvation” here as referring to the Lord Christ Himself, as Simon the Elder said when he held the baby Jesus: “My eyes have seen Your salvation.”
He also says: The Son who is from God (the Father) is our God. He is also the Savior of the human race, who supports our weaknesses and corrects the disturbances arising in our hearts from experiences.]

The link between the psalm and the Gospel (Father Luke Sidarous)
Before the crucifixion by hours, we find the Lord Jesus directing the gaze of humanity to the Father, not in terms of distinction between Him and the Father in essence, as one sent by Him – far be it – because He is the one who says, “I and the Father are one”… But He cannot speak about Himself without speaking to us about His good Father.

And the psalm also is the voice of the Son of God who took the form of a servant addressing the Father, speaking about Him to humanity, saying: “My salvation which I have completed for you, and my glory which I have bestowed upon humanity, is from the Father (my God), my assistance to the weak and fallen, and my hope for sinners is also the work of my Father.”
Thus, our thoughts must always turn towards the Father in Christ in every moment of His redemptive suffering, and thus we enter into the communion of the Father and the Son, in the love of the Father and the sacrifice of the Son.

The Gospel (John 12:44-50)

The Gospel concludes with the Lord’s call for everyone to believe in Him to see His light, salvation, and life:
“I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world… but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command,… what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life.”