*Greek: Our Kings

Ode 7

Irmos: The foolish command of the impious tyrant, / breathing with threat and abominable blasphemy, / has thrown the nations into confusion; / but the three youths were not frightened / by the wrath of beasts, nor by the noisy fire, / but, being in the fire, / against which the dew-bearing wind blew, they sang: / "Most praiseworthy God of the fathers and ours, blessed art Thou!"

The first of the mortals, / having eaten of the tree, fell into perdition, / for condemned to the most inglorious deprivation of life, / he, as a kind of destructive corruption for the body, / transmitted the disease to all his race; / but we, born on earth, having found restoration / through the wood of the Cross, cry out: / "Most praiseworthy God of fathers and ours, blessed art Thou!"

Disobedience violated God's command / and the tree brought death to people / through untimely eating from it; / and therefore the tree of precious life / was shut for safety; / but it was revealed by an evil death to the dead thief, / who wisely cried out: / "Most praiseworthy of the fathers and our God, blessed art Thou!"

Beholding the future, Israel / embraces the top of Joseph's rod, / foretelling that the most glorious Cross / will have royal power; / For he is the victorious praise of kings / and a light to those who cry out in faith: / "Praiseworthy of the fathers and our God, blessed art thou!"

Ode 8

Irmos: Bless, young men, / equal to the Trinity, / God the Father the Creator, / sing praises to the Word, Who descended / and transformed fire into dew, / and exalt to all the life of the Giver / of the All-Holy Spirit, forever!

At the exaltation of the Tree, / sprinkled with the blood of the incarnate Word of God, / sing, O Heavenly Powers, / celebrating the restoration of mortals; / people, worship the Cross of Christ, / through which is the resurrection of the world forever.

Earthly stewards of grace, / raise up with your hands, as befits a holy thing, / the Cross on which Christ God stood, / and the spear that pierced the body of God the Word; / that all nations may see the salvation of God, / glorifying Him forever.

Rejoice, ye chosen by the will of God, / faithful Christian kings: / having received from God the sacred Cross, / rejoice in this victorious weapon: / for by it the nations, boldly seeking wars, / are scattered forever.

On the 9th canto we do not sing "By the Highest Honor of the Cherubim", even on Sunday, but we sing the refrain of the feast:

Magnify, O my soul, / the all-holy Cross of the Lord.

And the irmos: Thou, O Theotokos, art a mysterious paradise: Then the second choir sings the same refrain and irmos. And to the other six verses we sing the same refrain.