Let all pious men and all lovers of God rejoice in the splendor of this
feast; let the wise servants blissfully enter into the joy of their Lord;
let those who have borne the burden of Lent now receive their pay, and
those who have toiled since the first hour, let them now receive their due
reward; let any who came after the third hour be grateful to join in the
feast, and those who may have come after the sixth, let them not be afraid
of being too late; for the Lord is gracious and He receives the last even
as the first. He gives rest to him who comes on the eleventh hour as well
as to him who has toiled since the first: yes, He has pity on the last and
He serves the first; He rewards the one and praises the effort. Come you
all: enter into the joy of your Lord. You the first and you the last,
receive alike your reward; you rich and you poor, dance together; you
sober and you weaklings, celebrate the day; you who have kept the fast and
you who have not, rejoice today. The table is richly loaded: enjoy its
royal banquet. The calf is a fatted one: let no one go away hungry. All
of you enjoy the banquet of faith; all of you receive the riches of his
goodness. Let no one grieve over his poverty, for the universal kingdom
has been revealed; let no one weep over his sins, for pardon has shone
from the grave; let no one fear death, for the death of our Saviour has
set us free: He has destroyed it by enduring it, He has despoiled Hades by
going down into its kingdom, He has angered it by allowing it to taste of
his flesh. When Isaias foresaw all this, he cried out: "O Hades, you have
been angered by encountering Him in the nether world." Hades is angered
because frustrated, it is angered because it has been mocked, it is
angered because it has been destroyed, it is angered because it has been
reduced to naught, it is angered because it is now captive. It seized a
body, and, lo! it encountered heaven; it seized the visible, and was
overcome by the invisible. O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where
is your victory? Christ is risen and you are abolished. Christ is risen
and the demons are cast down. Christ is risen and the angels rejoice.
Christ is risen and life is freed. Christ is risen and the tomb is
emptied of the dead: for Christ, being risen from the dead, has become the
Leader and Reviver of those who had fallen asleep. To Him be glory and
power for ever and ever. Amen.
