Akathist Hymn to the Holy Great-Martyr Prince Bidzina and the Martyrs Shalva and Elizbar, Eristavis of Ksani
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us. Amen.
Glory to Thee, our God, glory to Thee.
O Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, who art everywhere present and fillest all things with Thy grace, Treasury of good things and Giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us from every stain, and save our souls, O Good One. Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us (Thrice).
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. O Lord, deliver us and release us from our sins; O Master, pardon our iniquities; O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for Thy name’s sake.
Lord, have mercy. (Thrice)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Priest: For Thine is the kingdom…
Lord, have mercy. (Twelve times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O come, let us worship God our King. O come, let us worship and fall down before Christ, our King and God. O come, let us worship and fall down before Christ Himself, our King and our God.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy great mercy; and according to the multitude of thy compassions blot out my transgression. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I am conscious of mine iniquity; and my sin is continually before me. Against thee only have I sinned, and done evil before thee: that thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged. For, behold, I was conceived in iniquities, and in sins did my mother conceive me. For, behold, thou lovest truth: thou hast manifested to me the secret and hidden things of thy wisdom. Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be purified: thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. Thou shalt cause me to hear gladness and joy: the afflicted bones shall rejoice. Turn away thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit in my inward parts. Cast me not away from thy presence; and remove not thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation: establish me with thy directing Spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and ungodly men shall turn to thee. Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation: and my tongue shall joyfully declare thy righteousness. O Lord, thou shalt open my lips; and my mouth shall declare thy praise. For if thou desiredst sacrifice, I would have given it: thou wilt not take pleasure in whole-burnt-offerings. Sacrifice to God is a broken spirit: a broken and humbled heart God will not despise. Do good, O Lord, to Sion in thy good pleasure; and let the walls of Jerusalem be built. Then shalt thou be pleased with a sacrifice of righteousness, offering, and whole-burnt-sacrifices: then shall they offer calves upon thine altar.
There is none who calleth on you in afflictions and findeth not swift consolation, invincible warriors of Christ; therefore, gathered here, we praise the Creator who hath given you such gifts, and we bring you our “Rejoice”, O our helpers: Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
Since your names, remembered in faith, openly heal pains by divine power, deliver us who extol you with praises, O martyrs of the Lord, from sicknesses and pains of soul and body and set us free from all passions, that after the custom of the men of our fatherland we may ever praise the holy martyrs and unceasingly extol your valour:
Rejoice, ye who were never put to shame in human affairs; rejoice, teachers of soldierly valour; rejoice, ye who discern the better from the worse and the good from the evil; rejoice, ye who gave yourselves up for love of the fatherland and faithfulness to the people; rejoice, ye who give courage to the army in battle against the enemy; rejoice, ye who confirm the spiritual courage of the Iberians; rejoice, ye who deliver our people from ruinous sloth; rejoice, ye who stir to love those whose heart is grown gross; rejoice, deliverers from hatred among brothers; rejoice, ye who bring wrath upon those who forget their own fatherland and customs; rejoice, ye who bind the Georgian people in one mind, one soul and one will; rejoice, ye who strengthen with love of the fatherland those who are in enmity and division; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When the little Shah Abbas purposed to root the Georgian people wholly out of their inheritance and settled countless Tatars with their wives and children from one end of Kakheti to the other, then, though there was no way of deliverance or help from anywhere, the Lord gave a good resolve to Zaal, eristavi of Aragvi, to raise war and vengeance against the shah, and he secretly summoned you, the eristavis of Ksani, Shalva and Elizbar, and the sufraji of Kakheti, Bidzina Cholokashvili; and ye swiftly armed valiant men and cried out the song of victory: Alleluia.
Taking counsel with one mouth and one heart, good friends and fair men, and being skilled in military array, having made sure of the Tushetians and the mountaineers, on one dark and moonless night ye fell secretly on the countless army of the shah that stood at Bakhtrioni and slew them all with the sword, leaving not one; therefore we call blessed your foresight and your victories over the Persians and according to our strength we weave praise for you:
Rejoice, leaders of the people given by God; rejoice, ye chosen for bravery and valour in battles; rejoice, ye armed with hope in the Lord and manly strength; rejoice, ye walled about with the weapon of the Cross; rejoice, ye bound in oneness of mind by love for God, fatherland and neighbour; rejoice, ye who boast in Orthodoxy and most fervently gave yourselves up for Christ; rejoice, ye sent as deliverers and protectors of the people, the lot of the Theotokos; rejoice, ye given over without trial to a merciless death; rejoice, ye tried by manifold fierce torments for following in the steps of Christ; rejoice, ye offered as a sacrifice for the homeland; rejoice, ye who are added to the glorious choir of the fathers who laid down their lives for faith and land; rejoice, ye set as guardians and keepers of the ancient Georgian lands and waters; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
The Ruler in all wisdom, foreseeing the steadfastness of your mind and the love ye had for Him, gave such help to those few Georgians, for the victorious George, darting about like lightning on a white horse, went before your army and cast down those foreigners and turned them back; therefore ye sent up thanks and glory to God, shedding tears: Alleluia.
With the help of our all-immaculate Lady the Theotokos and the fellowship in arms of the great-martyr George, ye valiantly fell upon the insolent Qizilbash who stood at Alaverdi, slew countless numbers and restored victory to the Georgians; so now also, standing with boldness before God as martyrs, ask of Christ the unshaken keeping of the churches, the gift of victory by the Cross to our people and steadfastness to Orthodox Georgians, that, bound in oneness of mind by love for God and the fatherland, we may ever call you blessed, who are truly worthy of praise:
Rejoice, conquerors of enemies by valour and overthrowers of the opposing powers; rejoice, ye who strike terror into unbelievers for the glory of the name of Christ; rejoice, ye who took up a mighty sword and shattered the whetted sword of the Persians; rejoice, ye who smote the defilers of the church of Alaverdi; rejoice, ye who cast down the breakers of the icon of Saint George; rejoice, ye who planted an undivided love for God, fatherland and neighbour; rejoice, ye who hewed through the stronghold of delusion and drove away the evil designs of the enemy; rejoice, ye who spiritually give courage to the Christians terrified by the godless; rejoice, deliverers from grievous affliction and captivity; rejoice, ye who showed the treachery of those lawless tyrants to be powerless; rejoice, ye who bring to life the enfeebled spirit of the fatherland; rejoice, ye who received victory and triumph from heaven; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When ye, the victorious leaders of the people, had rest from the enemy, ye built up the ruined churches and adorned them and made them beautiful for the glory of God, and all that scattered people settled again in their own places, and, thanking you, they unceasingly sent up prayer and glory to God; so now also offer our supplication to the Deliverer and ask for us that He scatter our countless enemies and gather again the scattered Georgian people, that without hindrance we may draw near to your honourable tomb and worthily call your valour blessed: Alleluia.
When they told this wondrous story to Shah Abbas, in great anger he commanded the governor of Kakheti to bring to ruin and death Zaal, the eristavi of Aragvi, and to send you before him; then with divine longing ye left honour and glory and presented yourselves swiftly before Murtuz-quli-khan, who sent all three of you to Persia, before the merciless shah; and the wondrous and valiant warrior of Christ, the eristavi Zaal, was slain by treachery; therefore we sing to you, a unity joined by the Holy Spirit:
Rejoice, guardians of the law of the fatherland; rejoice, keepers of the right faith; rejoice, ye who overthrew unjust judgments; rejoice, ye who sound the bell of spiritual watchfulness; rejoice, ye who laid down your lives first for Christ and then for your brothers; rejoice, ye who dry the tears of the sorrow of the Georgians; rejoice, uniters of neighbours and smiters of enemies; rejoice, ye who like David cast down the foreigners; rejoice, ye who put the barbarians to shame by victory; rejoice, ye who bridled the Persians and justly turned them back; rejoice, terror of blasphemers, adulterers and thieves; rejoice, ye who bring wrath upon apostates from faith and fatherland; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When they set you before that judgment-seat of the shah, they promised you many good things and pressed you to forsake Christ and turn to Muhammad; but ye said fearlessly: “We seek not your gifts, for we are servants of the King of heaven and await unfailing rewards from Him”; therefore we who are gathered here all praise you, valiant warriors of Christ armed with the Cross: Alleluia.
Then the tyrants recalled your valour and your goodness and told you to spare yourselves and not give yourselves up to an untimely death; but ye answered with an untroubled mind: “We will not depart from the law of Christ, nor will we ever listen to that false prophet of yours”, and, walled about ever with prayer, ye cast down the delusion of the crafty one; therefore give strength to our feebly speaking tongue to adorn your struggle:
Rejoice, wondrous and truly valiant warriors of the heavenly King; rejoice, ye who by firm faith exposed the treachery of the tyrants; rejoice, unbending walls of the land and of the faith; rejoice, towers and helpers of Orthodoxy; rejoice, gold-wrought lamps of godliness; rejoice, patterns of the divine army and rousers of valour; rejoice, mighty avengers on the enemies of the Kartlosians; rejoice, renowned luminaries of the land of Iberia; rejoice, deliverers and protectors of the region of Kakheti; rejoice, praiseworthy sons of our fatherland; rejoice, images of the victoriousness of the Georgians; rejoice, precious pearls of the Church in heaven and on earth; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When those godless men were cut off from the hope of turning you, they seized all three of you warriors of Christ, and beat you in bonds and dragged you without mercy along the ground, and again pressed you to deny Christ; but ye, as though in another’s flesh, courageously endured the cruel beatings and sweetly cried aloud the song of the three youths: Alleluia.
Then your servants who were there besought you, O blessed ones, to submit to their command and deliver yourselves from such great evils; but ye rebuked them sharply and said: “Is it not enough that these godless tyrants are forcing us, and with them those invisible enemies who fiercely war against our people?” Therefore it is meet to say to you, O martyrs, these songs of victory:
Rejoice, ye who kept unchangeably the nobility of the spirit; rejoice, candles that enlighten the wise and burn the foolish; rejoice, deliverers from the wiles of men and the guile of the enemy; rejoice, ye who by divine power endured sufferings of many kinds; rejoice, ye who cleanse from the filth and stench of lawlessness; rejoice, ye who smite the servants of the devil with the sword of reproof; rejoice, ye who drive away diseases and infirmities of many kinds; rejoice, ye who quench the flame of the passions and grievous diseases; rejoice, ye who bring disobedient youths to understanding and instruct them; rejoice, ye who set captives free and defend orphans and widows; rejoice, ye who expose the seeming prosperity in sin; rejoice, ye who ask of the Lord the sweetness of piety for the Georgian people; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
Neither flattery nor threats could ever shake your invincible mind, O valiant ones, but ye encouraged one another to receive with joy every torment that came upon you, and ye prayed with tears and besought God to send you His help, and ye glorified the All-holy Trinity with the thrice-holy hymn: Alleluia.
Then the tyrant marvelled at your courage and said with flattery to the valiant martyrs: “Do not make yourselves, men of renown, a laughing-stock to your enemies, nor choose death instead of sweet life, but deny the law of Christ and receive a multitude of gifts and an abundance of all you need”; but ye did not enslave yourselves to an unworthy servitude and were unbending in your resolve; therefore blessed among the saints is your struggle and victory, which is praised thus:
Rejoice, labourers of the divine law; rejoice, firm pillars of the faith; rejoice, chosen vessels of holiness; rejoice, all-unshakeable towers of courage; rejoice, images and seals of the life of the fatherland; rejoice, shields that guard piety; rejoice, two-edged swords that cut off impiety; rejoice, plants of paradise that bring forth good fruit; rejoice, branches of the vine of Christ cut off without mercy; rejoice, glories and strengths of our fatherland; rejoice, intercessors for the people of Iberia and their strengtheners; rejoice, sweet-sounding harps and fair organs of the Church of the Georgians; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When those godless men heard all this, they stripped you and threw you down, bound hand and foot, in the heat of the sun; but ye, wasted with hunger and thirst and bitten without mercy by flies and wasps, were not troubled for the flesh, but, awaiting the crowns and rewards of victory, ye sang with longing to Christ, the Judge of your contest: Alleluia.
First the executioners came to the two glorious eristavis and resolved to cut off your heads first, only so that they might strike terror into Bidzina Cholokashvili and frighten him who was valiant in spirit and brave in mind; but he gave you courage and said to you: “Nothing is sweeter than death for Christ”, and his lips did not cease to glorify God; and ye commended first your fatherland and then your souls to Christ the King, and now ye rejoice with the assembly of the saints and are intercessors for those who sing to you:
Rejoice, ye who by strength of spirit covered human weakness; rejoice, strength of the weak and overthrowers of the mighty; rejoice, ye who quenched the furnace of torments with the dew of patience; rejoice, ye who boldly cast down the delusion of foreigners; rejoice, ye who humble the proud and haughty; rejoice, ye who exalt the lowly and lovers of poverty; rejoice, ye who put to shame haters of their brothers and seekers of gain; rejoice, reprovers of slanderers and of those who dishonour their parents; rejoice, ye who save all who fervently entreat you; rejoice, ye who show mercy to those in ascetic struggle and in monastic life; rejoice, comforters of those in exile and sojourning; rejoice, fellow-fighters and protectors of the armed forces that bear the name of Christ; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When those executioners raised their right hands to strike hard upon your necks, they could not reach them, for ye were valiant and tall of stature; then they struck their swords against your shins and threw you down on your knees, and so cut off the heads of the radiant eristavis; but ye did not choose the honour of this passing moment, nor did ye deny the name of Christ, for whom ye both suffered and laid down your souls; and we, the children of the Church of the Georgians, cry aloud in wonder and say: Alleluia.
When the tyrants saw that the fear of death had not bent thy heart, they clothed the divine martyr in a chador, as they clothed Christ our God in a purple robe, then they brought an ass and set thee upon it and led thee about the streets and mocked thee; but thou didst again reprove their wicked law and harden them the more, for with thy friends thou didst hasten to enter the Jerusalem on high, O valiant Bidzina; therefore we sing to thee as is fitting and honour thy memory with longing:
Rejoice, thou who by the light of thy martyrdom bringest dawn to the darkness of the fatherland; rejoice, thou who by thy struggle didst make the Church shine; rejoice, thou who didst amaze the bodiless ranks; rejoice, thou who strengthenest the faithful yet more; rejoice, thou who by divine grace makest the ignorant wise; rejoice, thou who bringest to nothing the many-woven devices and arts of this oppressing enemy; rejoice, defender of the wretched and the oppressed; rejoice, healer of enfeebled souls; rejoice, thou who drivest evil spirits out of the possessed; rejoice, helper of the faithful and overthrower of the godless; rejoice, thou who soothest the wounds of our sins; rejoice, swift intercessor for those who honour thee and deliverer from unjust malice; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
Then those executioners took whetted swords and began without mercy to hew and cut thy limbs and joints, O valiant Bidzina: first they cut off the fingers of thy right hand one by one, and then those of the left, and as thy flesh was torn apart, thy innocent blood was offered before God like a fragrant sacrifice; but thou, cruelly stretched out, didst bear courageously the rending of thy flesh and the merciless wasting, like James the Persian, and with an unceasing mind didst glorify Him who strengthened thee: Alleluia.
Then they cut off both arms to the elbows and both legs to the knees, and both upper arms from the elbow to the shoulder, and so they dragged thy mercilessly severed limbs along the ground, and again they cut off both thighs; and thou wast still alive, O valiant Bidzina, for only thy head remained unharmed on thy much-suffering body, and it was dreadful to behold; yet thou didst bear in silence the loosing of thy joints and didst show with thine eyes the sign of prayer; therefore, beholding the calamities and sorrows that came upon thee, we make bold to sing to thee:
Rejoice, thou who by faith in the Trinity didst trample on the power of the enemy; rejoice, holy and spotless lamb, who didst shed thy blood for Christ; rejoice, thou who by unceasing prayer drivest away the temptations of the devil; rejoice, thou who by thy blood didst quench the fire of godlessness; rejoice, thou who exaltest the wise and clear-sighted; rejoice, thou who humblest the double-minded and unrepentant; rejoice, thou who castest down sorcerers and soothsayers; rejoice, thou who showest mercy to those who give themselves up for Christ and smitest those who bear false witness against Christ; rejoice, thou who terrifiest and humblest all who are at enmity with the Iberians; rejoice, thou who settest the erring on the path of truth; rejoice, thou who restorest to the service of the fatherland the Georgians led astray by the treacherous enemy; rejoice, reprover of those who hate righteousness and crusher of those who call evil good; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
When they dragged thee dishonourably by the hair along the ground, one of the executioners looked within and saw that thy heart was still beating as before, and in anger he struck thy holy heart with the sword and slew thee like a sheep with a spear; and thy all-radiant soul made its dwelling in the Jerusalem on high, where Shalva and Elizbar dwelt; therefore the Georgians bore witness to thy great-martyrdom, O valiant Bidzina, and uttered this hymn of praise: Alleluia.
When the limbs of the martyrs, hewn by the sword, were thrown out unburied, that night a radiant light was spread over all three bodies, visible to all, and those who saw it glorified God; then the Armenians who were there took them away secretly and buried them in their own church, and those relics of the saints wrought many healings; and after a time Shalva’s wife and son brought up their bodies, mingled one with another, and laid them in one shrine at Ikorta, in the church of the Archangels; therefore the peoples who love the martyrs and a cross-bearing assembly went out to meet them with singing and cried aloud eagerly:
Rejoice, imitators of the Passion of Christ, who took death upon you of your own will; rejoice, ye who gave up your souls to God untroubled; rejoice, ye who received a merciless death with thanksgiving; rejoice, ye who by your struggle received the light that passeth not away; rejoice, ye who call to the service of the fatherland and to good order; rejoice, haters of lying and perjury; rejoice, reprovers of time-servers and of those who renounce the struggle of their fathers and forefathers; rejoice, shamers of all the wicked and slothful; rejoice, ye who bless those who guard holy things with reverence; rejoice, ye who show mercy to those who have laboured for faith and fatherland; rejoice, comforters of those who walk in the way of truth; rejoice, ye who bring wrath upon all evil ways and vices; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
Since ye strove mightily and by slaughter and blood won spiritual grace, offer now our supplication to the Deliverer and ask for us that false and unbelieving men, who blaspheme the true God and have mammon for their object of worship and prayer, may never be granted dominion over our people and the plundering of Orthodox Georgians, but that leaders of the people perfect in all Georgian good conduct may be multiplied for us, who care for our people and like David sing to God in humility: Alleluia.
As ye appeared to the Iberians as watchful shepherds and drove spiritual sleep away from the people, so now also make haste to deliver us from trials, and direct well our work, our vision and our faith, that fathers may teach their children the past of their native land, and mothers, imitating the mothers of old, may instruct those born of them in the love of the law and of neighbour, that all may glorify Jesus our Deliverer in spirit and in truth, and in the blessed Georgian tongue unceasingly praise your valour:
Rejoice, ye who together bore that fierce trial, for a holy struggle uniteth brotherhood and crowns of victory adorn it; rejoice, lights of the faithful and renowned luminaries of the faith, for ye scattered the night of the Persian delusion; rejoice, invincible fighters for our fatherland in the time of the invasion of foreigners, for ye received that reward of your labours; rejoice, ye appointed warriors of Christ, who gave you such a wondrous victory; rejoice, crushers of that proud serpent, for ye had Christ crucified as your wall and your strength; rejoice, beauty of the radiant company of martyrs, for out of longing for Christ ye exchanged earthly soldiery for the incorruptible pearl; rejoice, diamonds invincible in spirit, for your wondrous endurance astonisheth our mind; rejoice, ye who came forth from the bosom of our past, for by offering yourselves to Christ ye became imitators of the first martyrs; rejoice, good, kind and faithful servants, for ye finished the course well and dwell in that ineffable light; rejoice, renowned among the renowned, whom the godless Persians mowed down, as before the radiantly crowned Queen Ketevan and the renowned luminary of the Georgians King Luarsab; rejoice, unsleeping guardians of the lands and waters enriched with the blood of our forebears, for your tomb ungrudgingly poureth forth grace and sanctifieth those places of Inner Kartli; rejoice, ye who are ever remembered by the Kartlosians, for the glorious name of Christ is radiantly glorified through you; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
O victors in the contest, valiant martyrs Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar! Accept the supplications and sighs now offered to you from a contrite heart, and remember not our wickedness, for we have sinned and done iniquity and have not done what God commanded us; but as ye have great boldness, entreat Christ God to keep us unharmed from every affliction and from the snare of the enemy, and to grant forgiveness of sins to those who sing to you: Alleluia.
Say this kontakion thrice, then:
Since your names, remembered in faith, openly heal pains by divine power, deliver us who extol you with praises, O martyrs of the Lord, from sicknesses and pains of soul and body and set us free from all passions, that after the custom of the men of our fatherland we may ever praise the holy martyrs and unceasingly extol your valour:
Rejoice, ye who were never put to shame in human affairs; rejoice, teachers of soldierly valour; rejoice, ye who discern the better from the worse and the good from the evil; rejoice, ye who gave yourselves up for love of the fatherland and faithfulness to the people; rejoice, ye who give courage to the army in battle against the enemy; rejoice, ye who confirm the spiritual courage of the Iberians; rejoice, ye who deliver our people from ruinous sloth; rejoice, ye who stir to love those whose heart is grown gross; rejoice, deliverers from hatred among brothers; rejoice, ye who bring wrath upon those who forget their own fatherland and customs; rejoice, ye who bind the Georgian people in one mind, one soul and one will; rejoice, ye who strengthen with love of the fatherland those who are in enmity and division; Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
There is none who calleth on you in afflictions and findeth not swift consolation, invincible warriors of Christ; therefore, gathered here, we praise the Creator who hath given you such gifts, and we bring you our “Rejoice”, O our helpers: Rejoice, invincible warrior martyrs, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, worthy of praise!
O radiant warriors, invincible in battles, who in afflictions stretch out a hand that never putteth to shame, all-praised martyrs Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar, swift helpers of those who entreat you and rampart and shelter of all the Georgians!
O great-martyr Bidzina, hewn limb from limb and smitten by the sword, and ye who suffered with him, Shalva and Elizbar, eristavis of Ksani! Remember us before God, and by your intercession deliver our people beset by trials and afflictions, that instead of mercy we may not receive the punishment of our presumption; for we have forgotten the good deeds of our forebears and the spirit of the ancient nobility, the concord of brothers, the obedience of the fathers, and the spirit of valour hath turned away from us. Instead we have become like alien nations and raging peoples, lovers of this passing age, apostates from Christ, from whom we have learned their works, and we serve the lusts of our hearts in imitation of them, as those who have no hope in Christ and have forgotten eternal life. Renew in us again, as it was in you, the warmth of faith, brotherly love for neighbour and divine zeal for the fatherland enriched with your blood, and raise up for us without hindrance from the root of David the anointed of God, who by firm faith shall wall about all the borders of Georgia and shall exalt and restore our height and strength from the land of forgetfulness, that we may be one flock and the Lord may be our Shepherd. Strengthen the Most Holy and Most Blessed Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, Archbishop of Mtskheta-Tbilisi and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazeti, our father Ilia, the most reverend metropolitans, archbishops and bishops and all the priestly and monastic orders, the commanders and the governors of cities, the Christ-loving armed forces, and our benefactors, and all Orthodox Christians. Magnify those who bear your names and those who entreat you. Entreat, O all-radiant martyrs, the sweetest Jesus whom ye loved, to forgive us our apostasies, the destruction and defilement of churches, the murders of the servants of God, strife among ourselves, betrayal, envy and enmities, the killing of infants in the womb and the multitude of our other sins.
O martyrs armed with the Cross of Christ, Bidzina, Shalva and Elizbar! Behold, we the Kartlosians entreat you: intercede before God, that He may grant glory to the churches, honour to the clergy, good shepherding of the people to rulers, courage to soldiers, sinlessness to the laity, chastity to women and good upbringing to children; and that He may restore to us love of righteousness, courage of spirit, many children, mercy to widows and orphans and standing by one another; and that He may grant us love of a holy life, hatred of unseemly deeds and contrition of heart, crowning with the saints and the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven, that we too with you may glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
It is truly meet to bless thee, O Theotokos, ever-blessed and all-spotless, and the Mother of our God. More honourable than the Cherubim and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim, who without corruption gavest birth to God the Word, the very Theotokos, thee do we magnify.
Lord, have mercy. (Thrice)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, through the prayers of Thy most pure Mother, of the holy great-martyr Bidzina and the holy and glorious martyrs Shalva and Elizbar, and of all the saints, have mercy on us. Amen.
Author and compiler: Tinatin Mchedlishvili
