Machar, Bishop, c.600
Evening Prayer – Week B
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: Where can I go from your Spirit?
where can I flee from your presence?
Opening (from Psalm 139)
1 I will thank you because I am marvellously made;*
your works are wonderful, and I know it well.
2 My body was not hidden from you,*
while I was being made in secret
and woven in the depths of the earth.
3 How deep I find your thoughts, O God!*
how great is the sum of them!
4 If I were to count them, they would be more in number than the sand;* to count them all, my life span would need to be like yours.
Glory to the Father…
or a suitable hymn
Psalm 24
1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,*
the world and all who dwell therein.
2 For it is he who founded it upon the seas*
and made it firm upon the rivers of the deep.
3 ‘Who can ascend the hill of the Lord?*
and who can stand in his holy place?’
4 ‘Those who have clean hands and a pure heart,*
who have not pledged themselves to falsehood,
nor sworn by what is a fraud.
5 They shall receive a blessing from the Lord*
and a just reward from the God of their salvation.’’
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,*
of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob.
7 Lift up your heads, O gates;
lift them high, O everlasting doors;*
and the King of glory shall come in.
8 ‘Who is this King of glory?’*
‘The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.’
9 Lift up your heads, O gates;
lift them high, O everlasting doors;*
and the King of glory shall come in.
10 ‘Who is he, this King of glory?’*
‘The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory.’
Creator and ruler of all, open our hearts that the King of glory may enter, and bring us rejoicing to your holy mountain, where you live and reign, now and for ever.
Conclusion (from 1 Timothy 3)
1 Great indeed, we confess,*
is the mystery of our religion.
2 He was manifested in the flesh,*
vindicated in the Spirit,
3 Seen by angels,*
preached among the nations,
4 Believed on in the world;*
taken up in glory.
Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: Where can I go from your Spirit?
where can I flee from your presence?
READING(S)
Luke 16:10-18
‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’
The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him. So he said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.
‘The law and the prophets were in effect until John came; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is proclaimed, and everyone tries to enter it by force. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one stroke of a letter in the law to be dropped.
‘Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.
Response (Ps. 105.5)
Call to mind what wonders he has done!
Call to mind what wonders he has done!
His marvellous acts and the judgements of his mouth.
What wonders he has done!
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Call to mind what wonders he has done!
MAGNIFICAT
Magnificat Antiphon: God has come to the aid of his servant Israel,* as he promised to Abraham and his children.
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 come to the aid of his servant Israel,* as he promised to Abraham and his children.
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 God, our refuge and strength, the very author of devotion: hear the prayers of your Church; and grant that what we seek in faith we may in fact obtain; 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.
