nesses Thou didst repay by great; for good deeds done to Thee in the body Thou didst return spiritual blessings; things earthly Thou didst reward with things eternal. What shall I say more? Words cannot express, the mind cannot realize, all Thy good gifts to men, all the miracles and signs wrought by Thee in Galilee, in Nazareth, in Bethany, in Jerusalem, in Judaea, and throughout the Holy Land, before the eyes of Thy disciples and of all men, in witness of the truth; that so by reason of all Thy divine and wondrous words and deeds they might believe that Thou art indeed the Christ, the Son of God, Who camest into the world to be the Saviour of mankind. How highly exalted in Heaven art Thou, Who upon earth wert so lowly! How humble and how loving wert Thou amongst men when Thou didst heal them: how stern, and how terrible wert Thou to the demons when Thou didst cast them out! How full of mercy wert Thou to the penitent, how strict wert Thou with evil-doers, how compassionate wert Thou to the afflicted, how kind to those in want, how consoling to those who were in grief! Where among men can be found a friend so faithful, where so powerful a helper in every time of need as Thou, our God? How great was the joy which Thou didst give to those sisters when Thou criedst with a loud voice: " Lazarus, come forth! " And presently he that had been dead came forth, obedient to the word spoken by Thee, the Lord of life and death. And then Thou saidst to Thy disciples, as having in Thy stead the cure of souls: " Loose him and let him go."
O my Lord, vouchsafe, I pray Thee, to loose me also from the chains of all my sins, that so I may meet death without fear, may come to Thee
