Thursday 12th March 2026
Lenten Fast: strict fast
Today we commemorate:
St. Theophanes the Confessor, of Sigriane (818). St. Symeon the New Theologian (1022)(or Oct 12th). St. Gregory Dialogos, pope of Rome & Apostle of the English (604). Righteous Phineas, grandson of Aaron (c.1500BC).
British Isles and Ireland:
St. Paul Aurelian of Wales, bishop of Ouismor (575). St. Alphege the Elder, bishop of Winchester (951). St. Mura McFerednach of Donegal (645).
Isaiah 11:10-12:2; Genesis 7:11-8:3; Proverbs 10:1-22
Isaiah 11:10-12:2
There will be on that day the root of Jesse, the one who arises to reign over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope and his resting place will be glorious. It will be on that day that the Lord will once again show his hand and be zealous for those of the people who remain, whoever is left over from the Assyrians and from Egypt and from Babylon and from Ethiopia and from the Elamites and from the sun’s rising and out of Arabia. He will raise a standard for the nations and gather the lost ones of Israel. He will gather the diaspora of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The jealousy of Ephraim will be removed and the enemies of Judah will perish. Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah and Judah will not afflict Ephraim. They will go on their way in the ships of the Philistines, and at the same time they will plunder the sea and those from the sun’s rising and from Idumea. First, they will lay their hands upon Moab, and the children of Ammon will be the first to obey them. The Lord will make a desert of the sea of Egypt, and with a powerful wind he will lay his hand upon the river. He will strike the seven channels so that he may pass through them in sandals. There will be a pass through for my people who are left in Egypt, and for Israel it will be like the day they came out of the land of Egypt. On that day you will say, ‘I bless you, Lord, for you were angry with me, but you have put away your wrath and had mercy on me. The Lord is indeed my God, my Saviour. I shall trust in him and not be afraid, for the Lord is my glory and my praise, and he has become my salvation.’
Genesis 7:11-8:3
In the six-hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month and the twenty-seventh day of the month, on that day all the springs of the deep were let loose and the waterfalls of heaven were opened. The rain poured down on the earth for forty days and forty nights. On that day Noah entered the ark with Shem, Ham and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife and the wives of his three sons. All the wild beasts according to their kind and all the livestock according to its kind, and everything that moves on the ground according to its kind and every bird according to its kind, came to Noah in the ark, two by two, male and female of all flesh in which there is the spirit of life. Those that went in were the male and the female of all living things as God had commanded Noah. And the Lord God shut the ark from the outside upon him. The flood continued for forty days and forty nights on the earth; the waters increased and bore up the ark, and it was lifted high above the ground. The waters surged and increased greatly over the earth and the ark was borne upon the waters. The waters surged greatly, very greatly over the earth, and covered all the high mountains under heaven. The water rose fifteen cubits covering all the high mountains, and all living things that move on the earth died: birds, livestock and wild animals, all life on earth and every human being. Everything that had the breath of life, whatever was on the dry ground, died. He destroyed everything that exists upon the face of the earth, both man and beast, and all the land animals and the birds of the air. They were wiped from the earth, and Noah alone was left with those who were with him in the ark. The water continued to cover the earth for one hundred and fifty days. Then God remembered Noah and all the wild beasts and all the livestock and all the birds and all the animals that live on the ground, all those that were with him in the ark, and God brought a wind upon the earth and the waters decreased. Both the springs of the deep and the floodgates of heaven stopped, and the rain from heaven ceased. The waters gradually diminished and disappeared from the earth, and after one hundred and fifty days the waters had abated. Then in the seventh month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the ark rested on the peaks of Ararat.
Proverbs 10:1-22
A wise son makes his father glad, but a foolish son is his mother’s grief. Treasures will be of no benefit to the lawless, but righteousness will rescue from death. The Lord will not let a righteous soul starve, but he will destroy the life of the ungodly. Poverty brings a man down, but the hands of the vigorous enrich. A son who is disciplined will be wise, and he will use a fool as a servant. A wise son is saved from the scorching heat, but a lawless son is blasted by the wind at the harvest. The blessing of the Lord is upon the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the ungodly will hide untimely grief. The righteous will be remembered with eulogies, but the name of the ungodly is snuffed out. A wise heart will accept commandments, but the one with no lid on his lips is perverse and will be tripped up. He who walks with sincerity walks with confidence, but the one who corrupts his ways will be found out. He who winks an eye at deception is gathering grief for men, but the one who rebukes openly is making peace. A spring of life is in the hand of the righteous, but destruction will cover the mouth of the ungodly. Hatred stirs up strife, but affection covers all who have no love of strife. He who produces wisdom from his lips strikes a heartless man with a stick. The wise will conceal perception, but the mouth of the reckless brings ruin close. The possessions of the rich are a strong city, but poverty is the ruin of the ungodly. The deeds of the righteous produce life, but sins are the fruit of the ungodly. Discipline guards the ways of a righteous life, but ill considered discipline will lead astray. Righteous lips conceal hostility, but those who give vent to insults are the most foolish. Many words will not excuse sin; you will be wise to spare the lips. The tongue of the righteous is purified silver, but the heart of the ungodly will fail. The lips of the righteous master what is noble, but fools die in poverty. The blessing of the Lord is on the head of the righteous; it brings wealth and never adds sorrow to the heart.
The text and chapter and verse references of the Old Testament readings are those of the Septuagint