Pentecost 26
Evening Prayer – Week C
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: Search me out, O God, and know my heart;*
try me and know my restless thoughts.
Opening (from Psalm 139.22)
1 You trace my journeys and my resting-places*
and are acquainted with all my ways.
2 Indeed there is not a word on my lips,*
but you, O Lord, know it altogether.
3 If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will cover me,*
and the light around me turn to night’,
4 Darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day;*
darkness and light to you are both alike.
Glory to the Father…
or a suitable hymn
Psalm 104
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul;*
O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!
you are clothed with majesty and splendour.
2 You wrap yourself with light as with a cloak*
and spread out the heavens like a curtain.
3 You lay the beams of your chambers in the waters above;*
you make the clouds your chariot;
you ride on the wings of the wind.
4 You make the winds your messengers*
and flames of fire your servants.
5 You have set the earth upon its foundations,*
so that it never shall move at any time.
6 You covered it with the deep as with a mantle;*
the waters stood higher than the mountains.
7 At your rebuke they fled;*
at the voice of your thunder they hastened away.
8 They went up into the hills and down to the valleys beneath,*
to the places you had appointed for them.
9 You set the limits that they should not pass;*
they shall not again cover the earth.
10 You send the springs into the valleys;*
they flow between the mountains.
11 All the beasts of the field drink their fill from them,*
and the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 Beside them the birds of the air make their nests*
and sing among the branches.
13 You water the mountains from your dwelling on high;*
the earth is fully satisfied by the fruit of your works.
14 You make grass grow for flocks and herds*
and plants to serve mankind;
15 That they may bring forth food from the earth,*
and wine to gladden our hearts,
16 Oil to make a cheerful countenance,*
and bread to strengthen the heart.
17 The trees of the Lord are full of sap,*
the cedars of Lebanon which he planted,
18 In which the birds build their nests,*
and in whose tops the stork makes his dwelling.
19 The high hills are a refuge for the mountain goats,*
and the stony cliffs for the rock badgers.
20 You appointed the moon to mark the seasons,*
and the sun knows the time of its setting.
21 You make darkness that it may be night,*
in which all the beasts of the forest prowl.
22 The lions roar after their prey*
and seek their food from God.
23 The sun rises, and they slip away*
and lay themselves down in their dens .
24 Man goes forth to his work*
and to his labour until the evening.
25 O Lord, how manifold are your works!*
in wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
26 Yonder is the great and wide sea
with its living things too many to number,*
creatures both small and great.
27 There move the ships, and there is that Leviathan,*
which you have made for the sport of it.
28 All of them look to you*
to give them their food in due season.
29 You give it to them; they gather it;*
you open your hand, and they are filled with good things.
30 You hide your face, and they are terrified;*
you take away their breath,
and they die and return to their dust.
31 You send forth your Spirit, and they are created;*
and so you renew the face of the earth.
32 May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;*
may the Lord rejoice in all his works.
33 He looks at the earth and it trembles;*
he touches the mountains and they smoke.
34 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;*
I will praise my God while I have my being.
35 May these words of mine please him;*
I will rejoice in the Lord.
36 Let sinners be consumed out of the earth,*
and the wicked be no more.
37 Bless the Lord, O my soul.*
Hallelujah!
O God of eternal light, heaven and earth are the work of your hands, and all creation sings your praise and beauty. As in the beginning, by your Spirit, you gave life and order to all that is, so by the same Spirit redeem us and all things, through Christ
Conclusion A song of Pilgrimage (from Sirach 51)
1 While I was still young, before I began my travels,*
I sought for wisdom openly in my prayers.
2 I asked for her outside the temple sanctuary,*
and I will seek her to the end.
3 She has been the delight of my heart.*
from first blossom to early fruit.
4 I have kept firmly to the true path;*
I have followed her steps since my youth.
5 I bowed my ear a little and received her;*
I found wisdom and was well instructed.
6 Glory to the One who gives me wisdom!*
I will live according to her way.
7 From the beginning I gained understanding from her;*
therefore I will never be deserted.
8 Because I longed to find her with all my heart,*
I have gained a good possession.
9 As my reward the Lord has given me a tongue*
with which I shall sing his praises.
Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: Search me out, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my restless thoughts.
READING(S)
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’
Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.’ He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
Response (Sirach 51.26)
Buy wisdom without money, take her yoke upon you
Buy wisdom without money, take her yoke upon you.
Let your souls receive instruction.
Take her yoke upon you.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Buy wisdom without money, take her yoke upon you.
MAGNIFICAT
Magnificat Antiphon: Abide with us, Lord,* for it is towards evening, and the day is far spent.
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: Abide with us, Lord,* for it is towards evening, and the day is far spent.
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.
