Οἶκος Ν'
The New Creation in the Virgin
The hymn celebrates the Theotokos as the vessel of the new creation, providing spiritual shelter, redemption, and intercession for the faithful.
The Creator showed a new creation when he appeared to us who were made by him. He sprang from a seedless womb and kept it just as it was, incorrupt, so that we, seeing the wonder, might praise her, crying out: Hail, flower of incorruption; hail, crown of self-control.✦✦1 Hail, you who shine forth the pattern of the resurrection; hail, you who make plain the life of the angels.2 Hail, tree of splendid fruit, from which the faithful are fed; hail, leafy wood under which many take shelter. Hail, you who carry in your womb a guide for those who wander; hail, you who give birth to a redeemer for captives.✦ Hail, intercession before the just Judge; hail, forgiveness for many who fall.✦3 Hail, robe of bold confidence for the naked; hail, tender love that conquers every longing.✦4 Hail, Bride unwedded.
Read the original Latin
Νέαν ἔδειξε κτίσιν, ἐμφανίσας ὁ Κτίστης, ἡμῖν τοῖς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γενομένοις· ἐξ ἀσπόρου βλαστήσας γαστρός, καὶ φυλάξας ταύτην, ὥσπερ ἦν ἄφθορον, ἵνα τὸ θαῦμα βλέποντες, ὑμνήσωμεν αὐτὴν βοῶντες· Χαῖρε, τὸ ἄνθος τῆς ἀφθαρσίας, χαῖρε, τὸ στέφος τῆς ἐγκρατείας. Χαῖρε, ἀναστάσεως τύπον ἐκλάμπουσα, χαῖρε, τῶν Ἀγγέλων τὸν βίον ἐμφαίνουσα. Χαῖρε, δένδρον ἀγλαόκαρπον, ἐξ οὗ τρέφονται πιστοί, χαῖρε, ξύλον εὐσκιόφυλλον, ὑφ' οὗ σκέπονται πολλοί. Χαῖρε, κυοφοροῦσα ὁδηγὸν πλανωμένοις, χαῖρε, ἀπογεννῶσα λυτρωτὴν αἰχμαλώτοις. Χαῖρε, Κριτοῦ δικαίου δυσώπησις, χαῖρε, πολλῶν πταιόντων συγχώρησις. Χαῖρε, στολὴ τῶν γυμνῶν παρρησίας, χαῖρε, στοργὴ πάντα πόθον νικῶσα. Χαῖρε, Νύμφη ἀνύμφευτε.
Scripture echoes
- ↩2Cor.5.17;Gal.6.15;Rev.21.5 — So if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. Gal.6.15 — For neither circumcision is anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. Rev.21.5 — And the One seated on the throne said, 'Behold, I am making all things new.' And He said, 'Write, for these words are trustworthy and true.'
- ↩Matt.1.18-Matt.1.25;Luke.1.26-Luke.1.38 — Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened in this way: after his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. Matt.1.19 — And Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly. Matt.1.20 — But as he was considering these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.' Matt.1.21 — She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Matt.1.22 — All this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: Matt.1.23 — "Look, the virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call his name Immanuel," which means, "God with us." Matt.1.24 — When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and he took his wife to himself. Matt.1.25 — and he did not know her until she had given birth to a son; and he called his name Jesus. Luke.1.26 — In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee whose name was Nazareth, Luke.1.27 — to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. Luke.1.28 — And coming to her, he said, 'Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.' Luke.1.29 — But she was troubled at his message, and she kept pondering what sort of greeting this might be. Luke.1.30 — And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Luke.1.31 — And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. Luke.1.32 — He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David. Luke.1.33 — And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. Luke.1.34 — But Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I have not known a man?" Luke.1.35 — And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore also the one to be born will be called Son of God." Luke.1.36 — And behold, Elizabeth your kinswoman—she too has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren. Luke.1.37 — For nothing will be impossible with God. Luke.1.38 — And Mary said, 'Behold, the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her.
- ↩Isa.61.1;Luke.4.18;Col.1.13-Col.1.14 — The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and release to prisoners. Luke.4.18 — "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to announce good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send the oppressed away in freedom." Col.1.13 — He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves. Col.1.14 — in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
- ↩Ps.7.11;2Tim.4.8;Jas.5.9 — My shield is upon God, the one who saves the upright in heart. 2Tim.4.8 — From now on, there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing. Jas.5.9 — Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the Judge is standing at the doors.
- ↩Gen.3.21;Isa.61.10;Matt.22.11;Rev.3.18 — And the LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and for his wife, and clothed them. Isa.61.10 — I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with garments of salvation, a robe of righteousness he has wrapped around me, as a groom wears a priestly crown, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. Matt.22.11 — But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding garment. Rev.3.18 — I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may become rich, and white garments to clothe yourself, so that the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.
Notes
- 1 ↩ἄφθορον: rendered 'incorrupt' for the womb preserved intact/undefiled; ἀφθαρσίας: kept as theological 'incorruption' rather than flattened to 'immortality'.
- 2 ↩τύπον: 'pattern/type/figure'; rendered 'pattern' to keep typological force without pseudo-technical 'type' jargon.
- 3 ↩δυσώπησις: earnest entreaty that wins over; rendered 'intercession' for Marian prayer force. συγχώρησις: forgiveness/pardon, not mere allowance.
- 4 ↩παρρησίας: bold freedom of speech/access before God, not mere social boldness. στοργή: tender/maternal affection; πόθον: desire/longing in the broad appetitive sense.
Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos companion
Never lose the rhythm again
Chosen Portion delivers your morning, midday and night office to your phone — the Hours, without the bells.
Chosen Portion is a modern Book of Hours: it turns the fixed-hour structure this collection preserves into scheduled, tappable daily prayer on your phone.
- Three daily prayer moments scheduled around your real calendar, not a monastery's
- Psalms and historic prayers sequenced for you — no page-flipping or decision fatigue
- A visible streak of completed offices, so the rhythm compounds instead of collapsing