The following hymns from the Sunday Matins service are directly related to the Second Eothinon Resurrection Gospel (Mark 16:1-8) read before the Canon, which speaks of the Myrrhbearers at the empty tomb. There are eleven eothina all together, and each Sunday is successively dedicated to one of them, then the cycle starts again. Each of the eleven eothina symbolizes one of the eleven disciples to whom the Lord appeared following His Resurrection.
The first of these series of hymns are the Exaposteilarion with its related Theotokion chanted after the Ninth Ode of the Canon. The word "exaposteilarion" comes from the Greek verb exapostello, which means "to send forth", referring to the sending forth of the apostles to proclaim the gospel throughout the world. In ancient times a chanter was sent out from the choir into the center of the church to chant this hymn to indicate the sending forth of the apostles. The author of the eleven exaposteilaria for each Sunday eothinon was the Roman Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos (r. 913-959).
Following the Praises (Ainoi) of Matins is the Doxastikon. The word "doxastikon" comes from the Greek word doxa, which means "glory" or "glorification", referring to the fact that preceding the hymn the verse "Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" is chanted. Each doxastikon on Sunday is directly related to one of the eleven Sunday eothina read earlier in the service. The eleven doxastika of Sunday Matins were all composed by the Roman Emperor Leo VI the Wise (r. 886-912).
English
EXAPOSTEILARION 2
The Myrrhbearing women rejoiced at beholding the stone rolled away. They saw a young man seated upon the tomb and he said to them: Tell the disciples with Peter that Christ is risen. Press forward into the mountain of Galilee; there he will appear to you as he said to his friends.
Theotokion
An angel brought the Virgin the salutation before her conception of you, O Christ. An angel rolled away the stone of your tomb. The former, instead of sorrow, brought tokens of ineffable joy, and the latter, instead of death, proclaimed and magnified you, the bestower of life, declaring the resurrection to the women and those initiated.
DOXASTIKON
Eothinon 2
2nd Tone
When the women came with Mary bearing sweet spices and pondered how to obtain their desire, they saw the stone rolled away and the divine youth who calmed the tumult of their souls. The Lord Jesus is risen, he said. Therefore, proclaim this to his heralds, the disciples and tell them to hasten to Galilee, and they shall see him risen from the dead as the giver of life and Lord.
Greek
ΕΞΑΠΟΣΤΕΙΛΑΡΙΟΝ Β’
Τόν λίθον θεωρήσασαι, αποκεκυλισμένον, αι Μυροφόροι έχαιρον, είδον γάρ Νεανίσκον, καθήμενον εν τώ τάφω, καί αυτός ταύταις έφη, Ιδού Χριστός εγήγερται, είπατε σύν τώ Πέτρω, τοίς Μαθηταίς, Εν τώ όρει φθάσατε Γαλιλαίας, εκεί υμίν οφθήσεται, ώς προείπε τοίς φίλοις.
Θεοτοκίον
Άγγελος μέν εκόμισε, τή Παρθένω τό, Χαίρε, πρό σής Χριστέ συλλήψεως, Άγγελος δέ τόν λίθον, εκύλισέ σου τού τάφου, αντί λύπης ο μέν γάρ, χαράς αφράστου σύμβολα, ο δέ αντί θανάτου, σέ χορηγόν, τής ζωής κηρύττων καί μεγαλύνων, καί λέγων τήν Ανάστασιν, Γυναιξί καί τοίς Μύσταις.
ΔΟΞΑΣΤΙΚΟΝ
Εωθινό Β’
Ήχος β’
Μετά μύρων προσελθούσαις, ταίς περί Μαριάμ Γυναιξί, καί διαπορουμέναις, πώς έσται αυταίς τυχείν τού εφετού, ωράθη ο λίθος μετηρμένος, καί θείος Νεανίας, καταστέλλων τόν θόρυβον αυτών τής ψυχής, Ηγέρθη γάρ φήσιν, Ιησούς ο Κύριος, διό κηρύξατε τοίς κήρυξιν αυτού Μαθηταίς τήν Γαλιλαίαν δραμείν, καί όψεσθε αυτόν, αναστάντα εκ νεκρών, ώς ζωοδότην καί Κύριον.
