Hymns

Let us sing, companions, to the Lord, let us sing his honor; let the sweet love of Christ resound from a pious mouth. First the proud one fell to the depths from the great light: so man, when he swelled with pride, first fell to the depths. Through the guilt of one all those after him perished: all are saved through the merit of one. It was a woman alone who opened the door to death: and she through whom life returns, it was a woman alone. A wicked brother it was who once struck down the just: the condemner of Christ, a wicked brother it was. That Passover warns what the first origin lost: what things to come prepare, that Passover warns. The ark is lifted by the waters when the sea would destroy men: lest men perish, the ark is lifted by the waters. Take, Father, all peoples in return for your Son's wound: when you hand over Christ, take, Father, the peoples. The Father's highest victim, signified in silent figures: which Christ unlocks, the Father's highest victim. See, the heir limps, seeing the Lord while he prevails: the harsh nation, seeing Christ, see, limps. He drove off famine, sold by the crime of his brothers: Christ was sold, he drove off famine. Faithless one, you perish in heart while the plagues lay all waste: when the plagues cease, faithless one, you perish in heart. The holy lamb called the fathers back from the enemy by blood: by blood the holy lamb brings us back from the enemy. The wave overwhelmed wickedness as the people walked through the sea: now for the peoples of the world the wave overwhelms wickedness. Impiety murmurs, though refreshed as the manna comes: Christ the bread is present, impiety murmurs. The hard people adopts a tiller of the earth as its head: alas, the hard people took Christ away as its head. The law gave a sign from the crime of an old punishment: and that salvation would come, the law gave a sign. See, the watering rock; be satisfied from its spring, unbeliever: the rock you rejected, Christ, see, the watering rock. The gift and the vow of the pious are taken by sacred fire: the seditious tribe is taken by sacred fire. The heir of the law did not reach the Father's blessed kingdom: Jesus dispenses the Father's blessed kingdom. The ark of God destroys the enemy as it goes round the walls: so the ark of God destroys the enemy of the world. The threshing floor has a fleece, but is dry while the fleece is wet: the whole threshing floor, wet, has a dry fleece. You conquer the nations by the honor of God in the promised gift: you conquer love for your daughter by the honor of God. You are all the glory of your people, who lay Goliath low: you who conquer the world, you are all the glory of your people. All the prophets sang the greatest gifts of God: Christ fulfilled the greatest gifts of God. The command of the law and wrath brought hard burdens: the grace of the command bore the hard burdens. The virgin Mary shines, her chastity violated by none: after giving birth to the boy, the virgin Mary shines. This Son of Man becomes the greatest question of the world: God with us is this Son of Man. The world received and embraces the great joys of God: alas, the world rejects the great joys of God. Signs move the peoples, the blind see mighty works: yet no signs move the hard peoples. Harsh death, brought by a tree, ran upon the peoples: harsh death is taken from the peoples by a tree. The Lord himself bore gifts for his servants in place of punishments: for his servants the Lord himself bore the punishments. Blessed Life came to turn death away from the wretched: blessed Life endured death from the wretched. Huge Tartarus perceived that the light of God was present: yet men do not see that the light of God is present. Fierce death subjected the world to itself through wretched man: fierce death, subjected, groaned through a man. See, that profane father rouses a race for death: Christ, see, rouses a race for life. This people denied the Lord with a stiff neck: this people first received the Lord. The impious nation that shed the blood of Christ returns glad: having tasted Christ's blood, it returns glad. The earthly author brought all crimes on his own: Christ dissolved all crimes for his own. Crime had once bound free hearts to itself: now Christ remakes free hearts for himself. The cruel power of sin gave strong chains: the sweet love of Christ gave strong chains. Now he sits above the stars; exult, all you faithful: faithless one, why do you rage? Now he sits above the stars. He who died thunders, he has subdued heaven and earth: what will his enemies do? He who died thunders. The shadow, the figure, is driven off by day as Christ comes: Christ comes to the nations, the shadow is driven off by day. Both the signs and the first ages teach you to hasten: the sacred rites we perform teach you to hasten. The Only-begotten, coming, confirmed the hopes of those before: the Only-begotten, coming, gave hopes to us. Your passion, Christ, fulfilled the gifts of the law: your passion, Christ, fills our gifts. This man who is God is the ancient hope of those before: the hope of the pious at the end is this man who is God. He will be the gift of faith to believers through all time: he who granted them to believe will be the gift of faith. At your coming, God, worldly error fell: this world perished at your coming, God. Full is the grace of God, which stands out among all nations: let the sects depart; full is the grace of God. The dove alone returns, which goes round the whole world: let the ravens depart; the dove alone returns. The Lord will come to give the pious what they deserve, and evil to the wicked: believe now, wretched ones; the Lord will come. The sight of you, Christ, is the torment and punishment of the wicked: all glory for the good is the sight of you, Christ. Great glory to the Father, glory always to you, Son: with the Holy Spirit, great glory to the Father.

From the turning point of the sun's rising to the boundary of the earth let us sing of Christ the prince, born of the virgin Mary. The blessed author of the world put on a servant's body, so that, freeing flesh by flesh, he might not lose what he had made. Heavenly grace enters the womb of a closed mother; a girl's womb carries secrets which she had not known. The house of a chaste breast suddenly becomes the temple of God; untouched, not knowing a man, she conceived a son by a word. The mother brought forth him whom Gabriel had foretold, whom John, leaping in his mother's womb, shut in, had perceived. He endured lying on hay, he did not shrink from the manger, and he was fed with a little milk through whom not even a bird goes hungry. The choir of heaven rejoices, and angels sing to God, and to the shepherds is made known the Shepherd and Creator of all. Herod, impious enemy, why do you fear that Christ is coming? He does not snatch away mortal kingdoms who gives heavenly ones. The magi went where they had come, following the star before them; by light they seek the Light, by their gift they confess God. The troop of mothers cries aloud, weeping for their dashed children, whose thousands the tyrant made a sacrifice to Christ. The heavenly Lamb touched the bath of the pure stream; he who took on himself the sins of the world took them away by washing us. He gave proof by miracles that he had God as his Father, healing weak bodies and raising corpses. A new kind of power: the water jars blush red, and the water, commanded to pour out wine, changed its origin. Kneeling, the centurion begs health for his servant boy; the great ardor of the believer quenched the fires of fever. Peter walks over the waves, held up by Christ's right hand: faith prepared a path which nature had denied. On the fourth day, already stinking, Lazarus received life, and, free from the chains of death, became his own survivor. The garment, touched, stopped the streams of hot blood; as the suppliant's tears watered it, the flows of blood dried up. Loosed in his whole body, suddenly commanded to rise, the sick man in turn carried his bed on his own feet. Then that butcher Judas, daring to betray his master, offered with a kiss the peace which he did not have in his heart. The truthful one is handed over to liars, the impious scourges the pious, and the innocent, fixed to the cross, is joined to robbers. After the Sabbath certain women companions were bringing dry myrrh, and the angel told them that the living one is not held by a tomb. Come with sweet hymns, let us all sing of Tartarus subdued by Christ's triumph, who, sold, redeemed us. The zeal of the envious dragon and the mouth of the most wicked lion the Only-begotten of God trod down, and returned himself to the heavens.