Readings for April 10, 2028: Great and Holy Monday

1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, that I was in the midst of the captivity by the river of Chobar; and the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. 2 On the fifth day of the month; this was the fifth year of the captivity of king Joakim. 3 And the word of the Lord came to Jezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans, by the river of Chobar; and the hand of the Lord was upon me. 4 And I looked, and, behold, a sweeping wind came from the north, and a great cloud on it, and [there was] brightness round about it, and gleaming fire, and in the midst of it as it were the appearance of amber in the midst of the fire, and brightness in it. 5 And in the midst as it were the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; the likeness of a man was upon them. 6 And each one [had] four faces, and each one [had] four wings. 7 And their legs were straight; and their feet were winged, and [there were] sparks, like gleaming brass, and their wings were light. 8 And the hand of a man was under their wings on their four sides. 9 And the faces of them four turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward. 10 And the likeness of their faces was the face of a man, and the face of a lion on the right to the four; and the face of a calf on the left to the four; and the face of an eagle to the four. 11 And the four had their wings spread out above; each one [had] two joined to one another, and two covered their bodies. 12 And each one went straight forward: wherever the spirit was going they went, and turned not back. 13 And in the midst of the living creatures [there was] an appearance as of burning coals of fire, as an appearance of lamps turning among the living creatures; and the brightness of fire, and out of the fire came forth lightning. 15 And I looked, and, behold, the four [had each] one wheel on the ground near the living creatures. 16 And the appearance of the wheels was as the appearance of beryl: and the four had one likeness: and their work was as it were a wheel in a wheel. 17 They went on their four sides: they turned not as they went; 18 neither did their backs [turn]: and they were high: and I beheld them, and the backs of them four were full of eyes round about. 19 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went by them: and when the living creatures lifted themselves off the earth, the wheels were lifted off. 20 Wherever the cloud happened to be, there was the spirit ready to go: the wheels went and were lifted up with them; because the spirit of life was in the wheels.

1 These are the names of the sons of Israel that came into Egypt together with Jacob their father; they came in each with their whole family. 2 Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Judas, 3 Issachar, Zabulon, Benjamin, 4 Dan and Nephthalim, Gad and Aser. 5 But Joseph was in Egypt. And all the souls [born] of Jacob were seventy-five. 6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation. 7 And the children of Israel increased and multiplied, and became numerous and grew exceedingly strong, and the land multiplied them. 8 And there arose up another king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph. 9 And he said to his nation, Behold, the race of the children of Israel is a great multitude, and is stronger than we: 10 come then, let us deal craftily with them, lest at any time they be increased, and whensoever war shall happen to us, these also shall be added to our enemies, and having prevailed against us in war, they will depart out of the land. 11 And he set over them task-masters, who should afflict them in their works; and they built strong cities for Pharao, both Pitho, and Ramesses, and On, which is Heliopolis. 12 But as they humbled them, by so much they multiplied, and grew exceedingly strong; and the Egyptians greatly abhorred the children of Israel. 13 And the Egyptians tyrannised over the children of Israel by force. 14 And they embittered their life by hard labours, in the clay and in brick-making, and all the works in the plains, according to all the works, wherein they caused them to serve with violence. 15 And the king of the Egyptians spoke to the midwives of the Hebrews; the name of the one was, Sepphora; and the name of the second, Phua. 16 And he said, When ye do the office of midwives to the Hebrew women, and they are about to be delivered, if it be a male, kill it; but if a female, save it. 17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt appointed them; and they saved the male children alive. 18 And the king of Egypt called the midwives, and said to them, Why is it that ye have done this thing, and saved the male children alive? 19 And the midwives said to Pharao, The Hebrew women are not as the women of Egypt, for they are delivered before the midwives go in to them. So they bore children. 20 And God did well to the midwives, and the people multiplied, and grew very strong.

1 There was a certain man in the land of Ausis, whose name [was] Job; and that man was true, blameless, righteous, [and] godly, abstaining from everything evil. 2 And he had seven sons and three daughters. 3 And his cattle consisted of seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred she-asses in the pastures, and a very great household, and he had a great husbandry on the earth; and that man was [most] noble of the [men] of the east. 4 And his sons visiting one another prepared a banquet every day, taking with them also their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 And when the days of the banquet were completed, Job sent and purified them, having risen up in the morning, and offered sacrifices for them, according to their number, and one calf for a sin-offering for their souls: for Job said, Lest peradventure my sons have thought evil in their minds against God. Thus then Job did continually. 6 And it came to pass on a day, that, behold, the angels of God came to stand before the Lord, and the devil came with them. 7 And the Lord said to the devil, Whence art thou come? And the devil answered the Lord, and said, I am come from compassing the earth, and walking up and down in the world. 8 And the Lord said to him, Hast thou diligently considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a man blameless, true, godly, abstaining from everything evil? 9 Then the devil answered, and said before the Lord, Does Job worship the Lord for nothing? 10 Hast thou not made a hedge about him, and about his household, and all his possessions round about? and hast thou not blessed the works of his hands, and multiplied his cattle upon the land? 11 But put forth thine hand, and touch all that he has: verily he will bless thee to [thy] face. 12 Then the Lord said to the devil, Behold, I give into thine hand all that he has, but touch not himself. So the devil went out from the presence of the Lord.