Wednesday after Pentecost 8
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 80
1 Hear, O Shepherd of Israel, leading Joseph like a flock;*
shine forth, you that are enthroned upon the cherubim.
2 In the presence of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,*
stir up your strength and come to help us.
3 Restore us, O God of hosts;*
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
4 O Lord God of hosts,*
how long will you be angered
despite the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;*
you have given them bowls of tears to drink.
6 You have made us the derision of our neighbours,*
and our enemies laugh us to scorn.
7 Restore us, O God of hosts;*
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt;*
you cast out the nations and planted it.
9 You prepared the ground for it;*
it took root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered by its shadow*
and the towering cedar trees by its boughs.
11 You stretched out its tendrils to the Sea*
and its branches to the River.
12 Why have you broken down its wall,*
so that all who pass by pluck off its grapes?
13 The wild boar of the forest has ravaged it,*
and the beasts of the field have grazed upon it.
14 Turn now, O God of hosts, look down from heaven;
behold and tend this vine;*
preserve what your right hand has planted.
15 They burn it with fire like rubbish;*
at the rebuke of your countenance let them perish.
16 Let your hand be upon the man of your right hand,*
the son of man you have made so strong for yourself.
17 And so will we never turn away from you;*
give us life, that we may call upon your name.
18 Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;*
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ, our good shepherd; you have led us to the kingdom of your Father’s love. Forgive our careless indifference to your loving care for all your creatures, and remake us in the likeness of your new and risen life. We ask this in your name.
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 25:31-46
‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?”Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’
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: Our spirits rejoice* in God our Saviour.
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: Our spirits rejoice* in God our Saviour.
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
O God, you have prepared for those who love you good things no eye has seen: pour into our hearts such love of you, that, by loving you in all things and above all things, we may be worthy of your promises, which surpass all we can desire; 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.
