Where do you look when you need help? At your phone? At the ceiling at three in the morning? The Psalmist looked somewhere else: "I lifted up mine eyes to the mountains, from whence cometh my help" (Psalm 120:1, Orthodox numbering). Three thousand years later, those words still steady a trembling heart.
The Psalms were sung by King David, prayed by the Lord Himself, and chanted in every Orthodox church since. In the Septuagint numbering we use in the Church, Psalm 120 is the one many Bibles number 121. Keeping the Orthodox numbering matters, because it is the one you will hear at Vespers and Matins.
You do not need to read many. One Psalm, read slowly, with the Jesus Prayer afterwards, can carry you through a difficult day.
Psalms lift our eyes; the Gospel shows us the One who answers. When the day weighs heavy, open the New Testament to the Lord's own invitation: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). Or let this be your morning words: "I am the light of the world; he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness" (John 8:12).
Our Orthodox New Testament is an English translation made from the original Greek, the text the Church has read in worship. What you read at the kitchen table matches what you hear on Sunday. It sits comfortably on the prayer-corner shelf beside your icons, and it is also available in a pocket size for the bus, the waiting room or the lunch break.
Start small and stay faithful. A few minutes every day will do more than an hour once a month.
We also carry Georgian prayer books, including a pocket prayer book and Psalms and prayers. ახალი აღთქმა, ფსალმუნები და სალოცავები ქართულადაც ხელმისაწვდომია.
Why are the Psalm numbers different from my other Bible?
The Orthodox Church follows the Septuagint numbering, so many Psalms sit one number lower than in Protestant Bibles.
Where should a new reader begin?
Start with the Gospel of John or Matthew, one short passage a day, with a Psalm alongside.
Is it a good gift?
Yes, for a baptism, a name day or a new catechumen. It is a gift that lasts a lifetime.
Ready to begin? Find the Orthodox New Testament here. May the Lord bless your reading.
— Father Thomas
