Small Compline is the service „after supper” (in Greek, Apodeipnon). It is read in church and often at home as the evening prayer of the family. The canon of the day may be inserted after the Symbol of Faith. When a priest is present, he begins: Blessed is our God, always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Beginning
When a priest is present, he begins: Blessed is our God, always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Otherwise, we begin as follows.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Glory to TheeYou, our God, glory to TheeYou.
O Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of truth, who artare everywhere present and fillestfill all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of life: come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain, and save our souls, O Good One.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.
Three times.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
O most holy Trinity, have mercy on us. O Lord, cleanse us from our sins. O Master, pardon our transgressions. O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for ThyYour name's sake.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father, who artare in heaven, hallowed be ThyYour name. ThyYour kingdom come, ThyYour will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
When a priest is present, he says: For ThineYours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Otherwise, we continue:
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.
Lord, have mercy.
Twelve times.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Come, let us worship God our King.
Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ, our King and our God.
Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ himself, our King and our God.
The Three Psalms
Psalm 50
(51) For the end, a Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came to him, when he had gone to Bersabee.
1Have mercy upon me, O God, according to your great mercy; and according to the multitude of your compassions blot out my transgression.
2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
3For I am conscious of my iniquity; and my sin is continually before me.
4Against you only have I sinned, and done evil before you: that you might be justified in your sayings, and might overcome when you are judged.
5For, behold, I was conceived in iniquities, and in sins did my mother conceive me.
6For, behold, you love truth: you have manifested to me the secret and hidden things of your wisdom.
7You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be purified: you shall wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow.
8You shall cause me to hear gladness and joy: the afflicted bones shall rejoice.
9Turn away your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
10Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit in my inward parts.
11Cast me not away from your presence; and remove not your holy Spirit from me.
12Restore to me the joy of your salvation: establish me with your 1 directing Spirit.
13Then will I teach transgressors your ways; and ungodly men shall turn to you.
14Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation: and my tongue shall joyfully declare your righteousness.
15O Lord, you shall open my lips; and my mouth shall declare your praise.
16For if you desired sacrifice, I would have given it: you will not take pleasure in whole burnt offerings.
17Sacrifice to God is a broken spirit: a broken and humbled heart God will not despise.
18Do good, O Lord, to Sion in your good pleasure; and let the walls of Jerusalem be built.
19Then shall you be pleased with a sacrifice of righteousness, 2 offering, and whole burnt sacrifices: then shall they offer calves upon your altar.
- Gr. governing.
- Properly, a heave or wave-offfering.
Psalm 69
(70) For the end, by David for a remembrance, that the Lord may save me.
1Draw near, O God, to my help.
2Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek my soul: let them be turned backward and put to shame, that wish me evil.
3Let them that say to me, Aha, aha, be turned back and put to shame immediately.
4Let all that seek you exult and be glad in you: and let those that love your salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.
5But I am poor and needy; O God, help me: you are my helper and deliverer, O Lord, delay not.
Psalm 142
(143) A Psalm of David, when his son pursued him.
1O Lord, attend to my prayer: listen to my supplication in your truth; hear me in your righteousness.
2And enter not into judgment with your servant, for in your sight shall no man living be justified.
3For the enemy has persecuted my soul; he has brought my life down to the ground; he has made me to dwell in a dark place, as those that have been long dead.
4Therefore my spirit was grieved in me; my heart was troubled within me.
5I remembered the days of old; and I meditated on all your doings: yes, I meditated on the works of your hands.
6I spread forth my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you, as a dry land. Pause.
7Hear me speedily, O Lord; my spirit has failed; turn not away your face from me, else I shall be like to them that go down to the pit.
8Cause me to hear your mercy in the morning; for I have hoped in you; make known to me, O Lord, the way wherein I should walk; for I have lifted up my soul to you.
9Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord; for I have fled to you for refuge.
10Teach me to do your will; for you are my God; your good Spirit shall guide me in the 1 straight way.
11You shall quicken me, O Lord, for your name's sake; in your righteousness you shall bring my soul out of affliction.
12And in your mercy you will destroy my enemies, and will destroy all those that afflict my soul; for I am your servant.
- Alex. as Heb. 'land of uprightness.'
The Small Doxology
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will among men.
We praise TheeYou, we bless TheeYou, we worship TheeYou, we glorify TheeYou, we give thanks to TheeYou for ThyYour great glory.
O Lord, heavenly King, God the Father Almighty; O Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, who takesttake away the sin of the world, have mercy on us. ThouYou who takesttake away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. ThouYou who sittestsit at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.
For ThouYou alone artare holy, ThouYou alone artare Lord, Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Every evening I will bless TheeYou, and I will praise ThyYour name unto the ages, and unto the ages of ages.
Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this night without sin. Blessed artare ThouYou, O Lord, God of our fathers, and praised and glorified is ThyYour name unto the ages. Amen.
Let ThyYour mercy, O Lord, be upon us, as we have set our hope on TheeYou. Blessed artare ThouYou, O Lord: teach me ThyYour statutes. Blessed artare ThouYou, O Master: make me to understand ThyYour statutes. Blessed artare ThouYou, O Holy One: enlighten me with ThyYour statutes.
ThyYour mercy, O Lord, endures forever. Do not despise the works of ThyYour hands. To TheeYou belongs praise, to TheeYou belongs song, to TheeYou belongs glory, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
The Symbol of Faith
The Symbol of Faith (The Nicene Creed)
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
In one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages; Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not made, of one essence with the Father, through whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man; who was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried; who rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures; who ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father; who will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
In the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets.
In one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the remission of sins.
I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come. Amen.
Here the canon of the day may be read, for example the canon to the Theotokos or to the saint of the day.
It is truly right to bless you, O Theotokos, ever blessed and most pure, and the Mother of our God. More honorable than the cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the seraphim, without defilement you gave birth to God the Word. True Theotokos, we magnify you.
When a priest is present, he begins: Blessed is our God, always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Otherwise, we begin as follows.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Glory to TheeYou, our God, glory to TheeYou.
O Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of truth, who artare everywhere present and fillestfill all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of life: come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain, and save our souls, O Good One.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.
Three times.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
O most holy Trinity, have mercy on us. O Lord, cleanse us from our sins. O Master, pardon our transgressions. O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for ThyYour name's sake.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father, who artare in heaven, hallowed be ThyYour name. ThyYour kingdom come, ThyYour will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
When a priest is present, he says: For ThineYours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Otherwise, we continue:
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.
The troparia: on weekdays, the troparion of the church or of the saint of the day; on other days, the following.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us; for, at a loss for any defense, we sinners offer to TheeYou, as Master, this supplication: have mercy on us.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
O Lord, have mercy on us, for in TheeYou we have put our trust. Do not be very angry with us, nor remember our iniquities, but look upon us now as One compassionate, and deliver us from our enemies. For ThouYou artare our God, and we are ThyYour people; we are all the work of ThyYour hands, and we call upon ThyYour name.
Both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Open to us the door of compassion, O blessed Theotokos. Hoping in you, may we not perish; through you may we be delivered from adversities, for you are the salvation of the Christian people.
Lord, have mercy.
Forty times.
The Prayer of the Hours
ThouYou who at all times and at every hour artare worshiped and glorified in heaven and on earth, O Christ our God, long-suffering, great in mercy and abundant in compassion, who lovestlove the righteous and hasthave mercy on sinners, who callestcall all to salvation through the promise of the good things to come: O Lord, receive also our prayers at this hour, and direct our lives toward ThyYour commandments. Sanctify our souls, purify our bodies, correct our thoughts, cleanse our intentions, and deliver us from every sorrow, evil and pain. Surround us with ThyYour holy angels, that, guarded and guided by their host, we may attain to the unity of the faith and to the knowledge of ThineYour unapproachable glory. For blessed artare ThouYou unto ages of ages. Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
More honorable than the cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the seraphim, without defilement you gave birth to God the Word. True Theotokos, we magnify you.
In the name of the Lord, bless, father.
Reader: Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
Prayer to the Theotokos
O spotless, undefiled, incorrupt, chaste and pure Virgin Lady, Bride of God: by your wondrous conception you united God the Word to mankind, and joined our fallen nature to heavenly things. You are the only hope of the hopeless and the help of the oppressed, the ready protection of those who flee to you, and the refuge of all Christians. Do not turn away from me, a sinner, defiled by shameful thoughts, words and deeds. As the Mother of the God who loves mankind, have mercy on me in your love, and receive my prayer, offered from unclean lips. Using your boldness as a mother, entreat your Son, our Master and Lord, that he may open to me the depths of his goodness, and that, overlooking my countless transgressions, he may turn me to repentance and show me to be a doer of his commandments. Be with me always, merciful, compassionate and loving: in this present life, a fervent helper and protector, turning away the assaults of my adversaries and guiding me to salvation; at the hour of my departure, guarding my wretched soul; and on the dreadful day of judgment, delivering me from eternal condemnation and making me an heir of the ineffable glory of your Son and our God. May I obtain this, O my Lady, most holy Theotokos, through your intercession and protection, by the grace and love of your only-begotten Son, our Lord and God and Savior, Jesus Christ, to whom belong all glory, honor and worship, with his unoriginate Father and his all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer to Our Lord Jesus Christ
Grant us, O Master, as we go to sleep, rest of body and soul. Keep us from the gloomy sleep of sin, and from every dark pleasure of the night. Calm the impulses of the passions, quench the fiery darts of the evil one that are craftily hurled against us, and still the rebellions of our flesh. Lull every earthly and material thought within us. Grant us, O God, a watchful mind, chaste thoughts, a sober heart, and gentle sleep, free from every fantasy of Satan. Raise us up again at the hour of prayer, strengthened in ThyYour commandments and holding firm within us the remembrance of ThyYour judgments. Grant us to sing ThyYour glory all the night long, that we may praise, bless and glorify ThyYour most honorable and majestic name, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Then: O most glorious ever-virgin Mother of Christ our God, present our prayer to your Son and our God, that through you he may save our souls. My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my protection is the Holy Spirit: O Holy Trinity, glory to TheeYou. All my hope I place in you, O Theotokos: keep me under your protection.
Mutual forgiveness may follow, and the dismissal.
