Evening Prayer

Today is the Fourth day of Christmas
Behold, the dwelling of God is with mankind. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them, and be their God. Revelation 21:3

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

Venite
The Antiphon:

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

Alleluia. To us a child is born: O come, let us adore him. Alleluia.

The Lessons

Psalm 93

⁽¹⁾ The LORD reigns, He is clothed with majesty; The LORD is clothed, He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established, so that it cannot be moved. ⁽²⁾ Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting. ⁽³⁾ The floods have lifted up, O LORD, The floods have lifted up their voice; The floods lift up their waves. ⁽⁴⁾ The LORD on high is mightier Than the noise of many waters, Than the mighty waves of the sea.

⁽⁵⁾ Your testimonies are very sure; Holiness adorns Your house, O LORD, 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.

Psalm 96

⁽¹⁾ Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth. ⁽²⁾ Sing to the LORD, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. ⁽³⁾ Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. ⁽⁴⁾ For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.

⁽⁵⁾ For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. ⁽⁶⁾ Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. ⁽⁷⁾ Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, Give to the LORD glory and strength. ⁽⁸⁾ Give to the LORD the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come into His courts.

⁽⁹⁾ Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Say among the nations, 'The LORD reigns; The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved; He shall judge the peoples righteously.' ⁽¹¹⁾ Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; ⁽¹²⁾ Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the LORD.

⁽¹³⁾ For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with His truth.

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.

1 Samuel Chapter 1

⁽¹⁾ Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the mountains of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. ⁽²⁾ And he had two wives: the name of one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. ⁽⁷⁾ So it was, year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, that she provoked her; therefore she wept and did not eat. ⁽⁸⁾ Then Elkanah her husband said to her, 'Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?' ⁽⁹⁾ So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the tabernacle of the LORD. ⁽¹⁰⁾ And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the LORD and wept in anguish.

⁽¹¹⁾ Then she made a vow and said, 'O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.' ⁽¹²⁾ And it happened, as she continued praying before the LORD, that Eli watched her mouth. ⁽¹³⁾ Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. ⁽¹⁴⁾ So Eli said to her, 'How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!'

⁽¹⁵⁾ And Hannah answered and said, 'No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Do not consider your maidservant a wicked woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief I have spoken until now.' ⁽¹⁷⁾ Then Eli answered and said, 'Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.' ⁽¹⁸⁾ And she said, 'Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.' So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.

⁽¹⁹⁾ Then they rose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD, and returned and came to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. ⁽²⁰⁾ So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, 'Because I have asked for him from the LORD.' ⁽²¹⁾ Now the man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the yearly sacrifice and his vow. ⁽²²⁾ But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, 'Not until the child is weaned; then I will take him, that he may appear before the LORD and remain there forever.'

⁽²³⁾ And Elkanah her husband said to her, 'Do what seems best to you; wait until you have weaned him. Only let the LORD establish His word.' So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. ⁽²⁴⁾ Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the LORD in Shiloh. And the child was young. ⁽²⁵⁾ Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli. ⁽²⁶⁾ And she said, 'O my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the LORD.

⁽²⁷⁾ For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. ⁽²⁸⁾ Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD.' So they worshiped the LORD there.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Colossians Chapter 1

⁽⁹⁾ For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; ⁽¹⁰⁾ that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; ⁽¹¹⁾ strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; ⁽¹²⁾ giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

⁽¹³⁾ He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, ⁽¹⁴⁾ in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. ⁽¹⁵⁾ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ⁽¹⁶⁾ For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.

⁽¹⁷⁾ And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. ⁽¹⁸⁾ And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. ⁽¹⁹⁾ For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, ⁽²⁰⁾ and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 2

⁽²²⁾ Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord ⁽²³⁾ (as it is written in the law of the Lord, 'Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the LORD'), ⁽²⁴⁾ and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, 'A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.' ⁽²⁵⁾ And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

⁽²⁶⁾ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. ⁽²⁷⁾ So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, ⁽²⁸⁾ he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: ⁽²⁹⁾ Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word;

⁽³⁰⁾ For my eyes have seen Your salvation ⁽³¹⁾ Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, ⁽³²⁾ A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.' ⁽³³⁾ And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.

⁽³⁴⁾ Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, 'Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against ⁽³⁵⁾ (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.' ⁽³⁶⁾ Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; ⁽³⁷⁾ and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.

⁽³⁸⁾ And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem. ⁽³⁹⁾ So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. ⁽⁴⁰⁾ And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.


The Song of Zechariah Luke 1: 68 to 79
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old,
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham,
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
Free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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.

You are God        
You are God: we praise you;
You are the Lord; we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father:
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you;
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free
you did not shun the Virgin's womb.
You overcame the sting of death
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God's right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.


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:  First Sunday after Christmas Day
Almighty God, you have poured upon us the new light of your incarnate Word: Grant that this light, enkindled in our hearts, may shine forth in our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, 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, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 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

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14