Evening Prayer: Saturday 24 June 2017

June 24, 2017

The Birth of John the Baptist
Evening Prayer – Festivals

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: Sing to the Lord a new song;*
sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful.

Opening (from Psalm 149)

1 Let Israel rejoice in his maker;*
let the children of Zion be joyful in their king.
2 For the Lord takes pleasure in his people*
and adorns the poor with victory.
3 Let the faithful rejoice in triumph;*
let them be joyful on their beds.
4 Let the praises of God be in their throat*
and a two-edged sword in their hand.

Glory to the Father…

or a suitable hymn

Psalm 116

1 I love the Lord, because he has heard the voice of my
supplication,*
because he has inclined his ear to me
whenever I called upon him.
2 The cords of death entangled me;
the grip of the grave took hold of me;*
I came to grief and sorrow.
3 Then I called upon the name of the Lord:*
‘O Lord, I pray you, save my life.’
4 Gracious is the Lord and righteous;*
our God is full of compassion.
5 The Lord watches over the innocent;*
I was brought very low, and he helped me.
6 Turn again to your rest, O my soul,*
for the Lord has treated you well.
7 For you have rescued my life from death,*
my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.
8 I will walk in the presence of the Lord*
in the land of the living.
9 I believed, even when I said,
‘I have been brought very low.’*
In my distress I said, ‘No one can be trusted.’
10 How shall I repay the Lord*
for all the good things he has done for me?
11 I will lift up the cup of salvation*
and call upon the name of the Lord.
12 I will fulfil my vows to the Lord*
in the presence of all his people.
13 Precious in the sight of the Lord*
is the death of his servants.
14 O Lord, I am your servant;*
I am your servant and the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me from my bonds.
15 I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving*
and call upon the name of the Lord.
16 I will fulfil my vows to the Lord*
in the presence of all his people.
17 In the courts of the Lord’s house,*
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Hallelujah!

Eternal God, faithful in your tender compassion, you give us hope for our life here and hereafter through the victory of your only Son. When we share his cup of salvation, revive in us the joy of this everlasting gift. We ask this in his name.

Conclusion (from Revelation 4 and 5)

1 Glory and honour and power*
are yours by right, O Lord our God;
2 For you created all things*
and by your will they have their being.
3 Glory and honour and power*
are yours by right, O Lamb who was slain;
4 For by your blood you ransomed us for God,*
from every race and language,
from every people and nation.
5 To make us a kingdom of priests*
to stand and serve before our God.
6 To God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb*
be praise and honour, glory and might,
for ever and ever.

Glory to the Father…

Antiphon: Sing to the Lord a new song; sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful.

READING(S)

Malachi 4:1-6

See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.

Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.

Matthew 11:2-19

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.’

As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: ‘What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,
“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.”
Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John came; and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. Let anyone with ears listen!

‘But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another,
“We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn.”
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, “He has a demon”; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.’

Response (PS. 132.15)

Zion shall be your resting place for ever.
Zion shall be your resting place for ever.
Here will you dwell for you delight in her.
Your resting place for ever.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Zion shall be your resting place for ever.

MAGNIFICAT

Magnificat Antiphon: Those that sow in tears* shall reap with songs of joy.

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: Those that sow in tears* shall reap with songs of joy.

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

Almighty God,
by whose providence John the Baptist was wonderfully born,
and filled with the Holy Spirit to prepare the way
of your Son, our Saviour:
give us, we pray, the light of spiritual joy;
and guide the hearts of all the faithful
into the way of salvation and peace;
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.