Thursday after Pentecost 21
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?
(Psalm 139.6)
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 106 Part II
19 Israel made a bull-calf at Horeb*
and worshipped a molten image;
20 And so they exchanged their Glory*
for the image of an ox that feeds on grass.
21 They forgot God their saviour,*
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 Wonderful deeds in the land of Ham,*
and fearful things at the Red Sea.
23 So he would have destroyed them,
had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach,*
to turn away his wrath from consuming them.
24 They refused the pleasant land*
and would not believe his promise.
25 They grumbled in their tents*
and would not listen to the voice of the Lord.
26 So he lifted his hand against them,*
to overthrow them in the wilderness,
27 To cast out their seed among the nations,*
and to scatter them throughout the lands.
28 They joined themselves to Baal-Peor*
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
29 They provoked him to anger with their actions,*
and a plague broke out among them.
30 Then Phinehas stood up and interceded,*
and the plague came to an end.
30 This was reckoned to him as righteousness*
throughout all generations for ever.
32 Again they provoked his anger at the waters of Meribah,*
so that he punished Moses because of them;
33 For they so embittered his spirit*
that he spoke rash words with his lips.
34 They did not destroy the peoples*
as the Lord had commanded them.
35 They intermingled with the heathen*
and learned their pagan ways,
36 So that they worshipped their idols,*
which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons*
and their daughters to evil spirits.
38 They shed innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,*
which they offered to the idols of Canaan,
and the land was defiled with blood.
39 Thus they were polluted by their actions*
and went whoring in their evil deeds.
40 Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against his people*
and he abhorred his inheritance.
41 He gave them over to the hand of the heathen,*
and those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them,*
and they were humbled under their hand.
43 Many a time did he deliver them,
but they rebelled through their own devices,*
and were brought down in their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless, he saw their distress,*
when he heard their lamentation.
45 He remembered his covenant with them*
and relented in accordance with his great mercy.
46 He caused them to be pitied*
by those who held them captive.
47 Save us, O Lord our God,
and gather us from among the nations,*
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
48 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting and to everlasting;*
and let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
Hallelujah!
God our Father, remembering your covenant you graciously pardoned those who rebelled against you. Grant that where sin abounds, grace may abound more, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
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 13:18-30
He said therefore, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.’
And again he said, ‘To what should I compare the kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’
Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, ‘Lord, will only a few be saved?’ He said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, “Lord, open to us”, then in reply he will say to you, “I do not know where you come from.” Then you will begin to say, “We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.” But he will say, “I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!” There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrown out. Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God. Indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.’
Silence
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 Antiphons: Show, O Lord, the strength of your arm;* scatter the proud and exalt 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)
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 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 (may be omitted when the Eucharist follows)
Eternal God, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning: grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
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.
