Evening Prayer

Easter
Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57

Confession of Sin
Most merciful God,
I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen

The Invitatory and Psalter

Lord, open our lips. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen   Alleluia


From Easter to Pentecost, Christ the Passover  can be used in place of the Venite or Jubilate.

Christ the Passover  1 Corinthians 5:7 to 8; Romans 6:9 to 11; 1 Corinthians 15:20 to 22
Alleluia.
Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us;
  therefore let us keep the feast,
Not with old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil,
  but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Alleluia.

Christ being raised from the dead will never die again;
  death no longer has dominion over him.
The death that he died, he died to sin, once for all;
  but the life he lives, he lives to God.
So also consider yourselves dead to sin,
  and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia.

  the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since by a man came death,
  by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die,
  so in Christ shall all be made alive. Alleluia.

Venite
The Antiphon:

ⓘ   A short, reflective sentence recited alongside a psalm to deepen our understanding of the readings.

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Colossian 3:1

The Lessons

Psalm 26

⁽¹⁾ Vindicate me, O LORD, For I have walked in my integrity. I have also trusted in the LORD; I shall not slip. ⁽²⁾ Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart. ⁽³⁾ For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes, And I have walked in Your truth. ⁽⁴⁾ I have not sat with idolatrous mortals, Nor will I go in with hypocrites.

⁽⁵⁾ I have hated the assembly of evildoers, And will not sit with the wicked. ⁽⁶⁾ I will wash my hands in innocence; So I will go about Your altar, O LORD, ⁽⁷⁾ That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, And tell of all Your wondrous works. ⁽⁸⁾ LORD, I have loved the habitation of Your house, And the place where Your glory dwells.

⁽⁹⁾ Do not gather my soul with sinners, Nor my life with bloodthirsty men, ⁽¹⁰⁾ In whose hands is a sinister scheme, And whose right hand is full of bribes. ⁽¹¹⁾ But as for me, I will walk in my integrity; Redeem me and be merciful to me. ⁽¹²⁾ My foot stands in an even place; In the congregations I will bless the LORD.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Psalm 28

⁽¹⁾ To You I will cry, O LORD my Rock: Do not be silent to me, Lest, if You are silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit. ⁽²⁾ Hear the voice of my supplications When I cry to You, When I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary. ⁽³⁾ Do not take me away with the wicked And with the workers of iniquity, Who speak peace to their neighbors, But evil is in their hearts. ⁽⁴⁾ Give them according to their deeds, And according to the wickedness of their endeavors; Give them according to the work of their hands; Render to them what they deserve.

⁽⁵⁾ Because they do not regard the works of the LORD, Nor the operation of His hands, He shall destroy them And not build them up. ⁽⁶⁾ Blessed be the LORD, Because He has heard the voice of my supplications! ⁽⁷⁾ The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart greatly rejoices, And with my song I will praise Him. ⁽⁸⁾ The LORD is their strength, And He is the saving refuge of His anointed.

⁽⁹⁾ Save Your people, And bless Your inheritance; Shepherd them also, And bear them up forever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Daniel Chapter 4

⁽²⁸⁾ All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. ⁽²⁹⁾ At the end of the twelve months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon. ⁽³⁰⁾ The king spoke, saying, 'Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?' ⁽³¹⁾ While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven: 'King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you!

⁽³²⁾ And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.' ⁽³³⁾ That very hour the word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like eagles' feathers and his nails like birds' claws. ⁽³⁴⁾ And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. ⁽³⁵⁾ All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, 'What have You done?'

⁽³⁶⁾ At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. ⁽³⁷⁾ Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

1 John Chapter 4

⁽⁷⁾ Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. ⁽⁸⁾ He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. ⁽⁹⁾ In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. ⁽¹⁰⁾ In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

⁽¹¹⁾ Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ⁽¹²⁾ No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. ⁽¹³⁾ By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. ⁽¹⁴⁾ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world.

⁽¹⁵⁾ Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ⁽¹⁶⁾ And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. ⁽¹⁷⁾ Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. ⁽¹⁸⁾ There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

⁽¹⁹⁾ We love Him because He first loved us. ⁽²⁰⁾ If someone says, 'I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? ⁽²¹⁾ And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 4

⁽³¹⁾ Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths. ⁽³²⁾ And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority. ⁽³³⁾ Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out with a loud voice, ⁽³⁴⁾ saying, 'Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!'

⁽³⁵⁾ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, 'Be quiet, and come out of him!' And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him. ⁽³⁶⁾ Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, 'What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.' ⁽³⁷⁾ And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

A Song to the Lamb       Revelation 4:11, 5:9 to 10, 13

Splendor and honor and kingly power
are yours by right, O Lord our God,
For you created everything that is,
and by your will they were created
  and have their being;
And yours by right, O Lamb that was slain,
for with your blood you have redeemed for God,
From every family, language, people, and nation,
a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
And so, to him who sits upon the throne,
and to Christ the Lamb,
Be worship and praise, dominion and splendor,
forever and forevermore.

The Song of Zechariah Luke 1: 68 to 79

Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers;
you are worthy of praise; glory to you.
Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you in the splendor of your temple;
on the throne of your majesty, glory to you.
Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you, beholding the depths;
in the high vault of heaven, glory to you.
Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.



The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord.
  He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
  He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
  He descended to the dead.
  On the third day he rose again.
  He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
  He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
  the holy catholic Church,
  the communion of saints,
  the forgiveness of sins,
  the resurrection of the body,
  and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Prayers

The Lord's Prayer   Traditional
Suffrages A

Seasonal Collect:  Third Sunday of Easter
O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh; and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Personal Prayers and Reflection

This is a time to pause, consider and listen. Pray for yourself and others. When you lack the words


Closing Prayers   Thanksgiving

Conclude with the following
Let Us Bless the Lord, Thanks be to God

May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Romans 15:13