Martin of Tours, Bishop, c.397
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. (Ps. 104.1)
Opening (from Psalm 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 55
1 Hear my prayer, O God;*
do not hide yourself from my petition.
2 Listen to me and answer me;*
I have no peace, because of my cares.
3 I am shaken by the noise of the enemy*
and by the pressure of the wicked;
4 For they have cast an evil spell upon me*
and are set against me in fury.
5 My heart quakes within me,*
and the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
6 Fear and trembling have come over me,*
and horror overwhelms me.
7 And I said, ‘Oh, that I had wings like a dove!*
I would fly away and be at rest.
8 I would flee to a far-off place*
and make my lodging in the wilderness.
9 I would hasten to escape*
from the stormy wind and tempest.’
10 Swallow them up, O Lord; confound their speech;*
for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
11 Day and night the watchmen make their rounds upon her walls,*
but trouble and misery are in the midst of her.
12 There is corruption at her heart;*
her streets are never free of oppression and deceit.
13 For had it been an adversary who taunted me,
then I could have borne it;*
or had it been an enemy who vaunted himself against me,
then I could have hidden from him.
14 But it was you, a man after my own heart,*
my companion, my own familiar friend.
15 We took sweet counsel together,*
and walked with the throng in the house of God.
16 Let death come upon them suddenly;
let them go down alive into the grave;*
for wickedness is in their dwellings, in their very midst.
17 But I will call upon God,*
and the Lord will deliver me.
18 In the evening, in the morning, and at noonday,
I will complain and lament,*
and he will hear my voice.
19 He will bring me safely back from the battle
waged against me;*
for there are many who fight me.
20 God, who is enthroned of old, will hear me and
bring them down;*
they never change; they do not fear God.
21 My companion stretched forth his hand against his comrade;*
he has broken his covenant.
22 His speech is softer than butter,*
but war is in his heart.
23 His words are smoother than oil,*
but they are drawn swords.
24 Cast your burden upon the Lord,
and he will sustain you;*
he will never let the righteous stumble.
25 For you will bring the bloodthirsty and deceitful*
down to the pit of destruction, O God.
26 They shall not live out half their days,*
but I will put my trust in you.
Conclusion (from 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 15:29-39
After Jesus had left that place, he passed along the Sea of Galilee, and he went up the mountain, where he sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them, so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Where are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?’ Jesus asked them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ They said, ‘Seven, and a few small fish.’ Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all of them ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Those who had eaten were four thousand men, besides women and children. After sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.
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 looks with favour* on his lowly servant.
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 looks with favour* on his lowly servant.
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
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.
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.
