Lucy Menzies, 1954
Friday after Pentecost 24
Evening Prayer – Week A
O God, make speed to save us;
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.
Amen.
PSALMODY
Antiphon: O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!*
you are clothed with majesty and splendour.
Opening (from 104)
1 You appointed the moon to mark the seasons,*
and the sun knows the time of its setting.
2 You make darkness that it may be night,*
in which all the beasts of the forest prowl.
3 May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;*
may the Lord rejoice in all his works.
4 May these words of mine please him;*
I will rejoice in the Lord.
Glory to the Father…
or a suitable hymn
Psalm 1
1 Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked,*
nor lingered in the way of sinners, nor sat in the seats of the scornful!
2 Their delight is in the law of the Lord,*and they meditate on his law day and night.
3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither;* everything they do shall prosper.
4 It is not so with the wicked;*they are like the chaff which the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes,*nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,*but the way of the wicked is doomed.
Giver of life, save us from the desert of faithlessness and nourish us with the living water of your word, that we may bring forth fruit that will last, in the name of Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Psalm 4
1 Answer me when I call, O God, defender of my cause;*
you set me free when I am hard-pressed;
have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
2 ‘You mortals, how long will you dishonour my glory;*
how long will you worship dumb idols and run after false gods?’
3 Know that the Lord does wonders for the faithful;*
when I call upon the Lord, he will hear me.
4 Tremble, then, and do not sin;*
speak to your heart in silence upon your bed.
5 Offer the appointed sacrifices*
and put your trust in the Lord.
6 Many are saying
‘Oh, that we might see better times!’*
Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O Lord.
7 You have put gladness in my heart,*
more than when grain and wine and oil increase.
8 I lie down in peace; at once I fall asleep;*
for only you, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
Faithful defender, do not let our hearts be troubled, but fill us with such confidence and joy that we may sleep in peace and rise in your light; through Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Conclusion 1 John 4
1 Beloved let us love one another,*
for love is of God;
2 And those who love are born of God*
and know God.
3 Those who do not love do not know God,*
for God is love.
4 In this the love of God was made manifest among us,*
that God sent his only Son into the world
so that we might live through him.
5 In this is love: not that we loved God,*
but that God loved us and sent his Son
to be the expiation for our sins.
6 Beloved, if God so loved us,*
we also ought to love one another.
Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!
you are clothed with majesty and splendour
READING(S)
Matthew 18:10-20
‘Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.
‘If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax-collector.Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.’
Response Ps. 119.105
Your word is a lantern to my feet.
Your word is a lantern to my feet.
A light upon my path.
A lantern to my feet.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Your word is a lantern to my feet.
MAGNIFICAT
Magnificat Antiphon: God has cast down the mighty* and lifted up the lowly.
1 My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,*
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour;
2 for he has looked with favour on his lowly servant;*
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
3 The Almighty has done great things for me*
and holy is his name.
4 He has mercy on those who fear him*
in every generation.
5 He has shown the strength of his arm;*
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
6 He has cast down the mighty from their thrones*
and has lifted up the lowly.
7 He has filled the hungry with good things,*
and the rich he has sent away empty.
8 He has come to the help of his servant Israel,*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
9 the promise he made to our forebears,*
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father… (may be said by all)
Magnificat Antiphon: God has cast down the mighty* and lifted up the lowly.
PRAYERS
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.
Amen.
Collect of the Day
O Lord,
forgive the transgressions of your people:
and by your goodness release us from the snare of sin,
in which, by our frailty, we have been caught;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, world without end. Amen.
Lord God almighty, come and dispel the darkness from our hearts, that in the radiance of your brightness we may know you, the only unfading light, glorious in all eternity. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!
The God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing:
through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
