Seventeenth Day
O Adonai and Leader of the house of Israel, Who didst appear to Moses in the fire of the flaming bush, and didst give him the Law on Sinai, come and save us with a stretched forth arm! O sovereign, almighty Lord, come to redeem us! Heretofore Thou didst show Thyself to Moses in a fiery bush, Thou didst give Thy Law to Thy people amidst thunder and lightning on Mount Sinai; come and redeem us now in the goodness of Thy Heart, in kindness and love. Thy chaste Mother, having heard the emperor’s edict, which obliges her and Joseph, her spouse, to repair to Bethlehem, prepares everything needful for Thy divine birth. She makes ready the humble swaddling-clothes which are to cover and protect Thee from the cold of that midnight hour. Thus it is that Thou willest to deliver us from the slavery of pride, and to show man that Thy divine arm is never stronger than when he thinks it powerless. Everything is prepared for Thy reception, except our hearts, which still await Thy holy grace, which is to change them, and make them fit temples for Thy abode.
Prayer.
O Lord Jesus, Who didst, for the love of us, etc., etc.