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having fashioned for him the soul out of nothing, having graced him with five-fold sensation and having set the mind, the charioteer of the soul, over the senses. And in addition to all these things, Master Lord, who will worthily narrate the course of rain-bearing clouds, the flashing of lightning, the crashing of thunder, for the supply of suitable nourishment and the all-harmonious mixture of the airs? But the man who disobeyed, you deprived of a life of reward, not destroying him completely, but putting him to sleep for a short time, you called him by an oath to regeneration, you loosed the bond of death, O life-giver of the dead through Jesus Christ our hope. Great are you, Lord Almighty, and great is your strength and of your understanding there is no number; creator, savior, rich in graces, long-suffering and bestower of mercy, who does not withhold salvation from your creatures; for you are good by nature, and you spare sinners, calling them to repentance; for your admonition is compassionate. For how could we have withstood being required to undergo a hasty judgment, when, being shown long-suffering, we barely recover from weakness? The heavens declared your dominion and the shaken earth its security, being hung upon nothing. The surging sea, feeding a myriad flock of living creatures, is fettered by sand, trembling at your will, and it compels all to cry out: "How magnificent are your works, O Lord; in wisdom you have made all things, the earth is filled with your creation." And the flaming host of angels and intelligent spirits say: "One is holy to Felmouni," and the holy Seraphim together with the six-winged Cherubim, singing to you the hymn of victory, cry out with unceasing voices: "Holy, holy, holy, Lord of Sabaoth, heaven and earth are full of your glory," and the other multitudes of the orders, angels, archangels, thrones, dominions, principalities, authorities, powers, crying aloud, say: "Blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place." But Israel, your earthly Church from among the nations, vying with the heavenly powers night and day with a full heart and a willing soul sings: "The chariot of God is ten thousandfold, thousands of the flourishing, the Lord is among them in Sinai, in the holy place." Heaven knows him who vaulted it over nothing like a stone vault, and united earth and water with each other, and diffused the life-giving air, and wove fire with it for warmth and the consolation of darkness; the choir of stars astounds, signifying the one who numbered them and the one who named them

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σκευάσας δ' αὐτῷ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος, αἴσθησίν τε πένταθλον αὐτῷ χαρισάμενος καὶ νοῦν τὸν τῆς ψυχῆς ἡνίοχον ταῖς αἰσθήσεσιν ἐπιστήσας. Καὶ ἐπὶ πᾶσι τούτοις, δέσποτα Κύριε, τίς ἐπαξίως διηγήσεται νεφῶν ὀμβροτόκων φοράν, ἀστραπῆς ἔκλαμψιν, βροντῶν πάταγον, εἰς τροφῆς χορηγίαν καταλλήλου καὶ κρᾶσιν ἀέρων παναρμόνιον; Παρακούσαντα δὲ τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐμμίσθου ζωῆς ἐστέ ρησας, οὐκ εἰς τὸ παντελὲς ἀφανίσας, ἀλλὰ χρόνῳ πρὸς ὀλίγον κοιμίσας, ὅρκῳ εἰς παλιγγενεσίαν ἐκάλεσας, ὅρον θανάτου ἔλυσας, ὁ ζωοποιὸς τῶν νεκρῶν διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τῆς ἐλπίδος ἡμῶν. Μέγας εἶ, Κύριε παντοκράτορ, καὶ μεγάλη ἡ ἰσχύς σου καὶ τῆς συνέσεώς σου οὐκ ἔστιν ἀριθμός· κτίστα, σωτήρ, πλούσιε χάρισιν, μακρόθυμε καὶ ἐλέους χορηγέ, ὁ μὴ ἀφιστῶν τῶν σῶν κτισμάτων τὴν σωτηρίαν· φύσει γὰρ ἀγαθὸς ὑπάρχεις, φείδῃ δὲ ἁμαρτανόντων, εἰς μετάνοιαν προσκαλούμενος· οἰκτίρμων γὰρ σοῦ ἡ νουθέτησις. Πῶς γὰρ ἂν ὑπέστημεν ἐπειγομένην ἀπαιτούμενοι κρίσιν, ὁπότε μακροθυμούμενοι μόλις ἀνανεύομεν τῆς ἀσθενείας; Σοῦ τὸ κράτος ἀνήγγειλαν οἱ οὐρανοὶ καὶ γῆ κραδαινομένη τὴν ἀσφάλειαν ἐπ' οὐδενὸς κρεμαμένη. Θάλασσα κυμαινομένη καὶ μυρίαν βόσκουσα ζóων ἀγέλην πεπέδηται ἄμμῳ, τὴν σὴν βούλησιν πεφρικυῖα, καὶ πάντας ἀναγκάζει βοᾶν· «Ὡς ἐμεγαλύνθη τὰ ἔργα σου, Κύριε· πάντα ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐποίησας, ἐπληρώθη ἡ γῆ τῆς κτίσεώς σου.» Καὶ στρατὸς ἀγγέλων φλεγόμενος καὶ πνεύματα νοερὰ λέγουσιν· «Eἷς ἅγιος τῷ Φελμουνί», καὶ Σεραφὶμ ἅγια ἅμα τοῖς Χερουβὶμ τοῖς ἑξαπτερύγοις σοι τὴν ἐπινίκιον ᾠδὴν ψάλλοντα ἀσιγήτοις φωναῖς βοῶσιν· «Ἅγιος, ἅγιος ἅγιος Κύριος Σαβαώθ, πλήρης ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ τῆς δόξης σου», καὶ τὰ ἕτερα τῶν ταγμάτων πλήθη, ἄγγελοι, ἀρχάγγελοι, θρόνοι, κυριότητες, ἀρχαί, ἐξουσίαι, δυνάμεις, ἐπιβοῶντα λέγουσιν· «Eὐλογημένη ἡ δόξα Κυρίου ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτοῦ.» Ἰσραὴλ δέ, ἡ ἐπίγειός σου Ἐκκλησία ἡ ἐξ ἐθνῶν, ταῖς κατ' οὐρανὸν δυνάμεσιν ἁμιλλωμένη νυκτὶ καὶ ἡμέρᾳ ἐν καρδίᾳ πλήρει καὶ ψυχῇ θελούσῃ ψάλλει· «Τὸ ἅμρα τοῦ Θεοῦ μυριοπλάσιον, χιλιάδες εὐθηνούντων, Κύριος ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐν Σιναΐ, ἐν τῷ ἁγίῳ.» Oἶδεν οὐρανὸς τὸν ἐπὶ μηδενὸς αὐτὸν καμαρώσαντα ὡς λιθόκυβον, καὶ γῆν καὶ ὕδωρ ἑαυτοῖς ἑνώσαντα, καὶ ἀέρα διαχέαντα ζῳοτρόφον, καὶ τούτῳ πῦρ συμπλέξαντα εἰς θάλπος καὶ σκότους παραμυθίαν· ἐκπλήσσει χορὸς ἀστέρων τὸν ἀριθμήσαντα σημαίνων καὶ τὸν ὀνομάσαντα