Evening Prayer

Today is the Feast of Holy Cross Day -- Click for Readings
Ordinary Time
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Saint and Major Saints' Days
Their sound has gone out into all lands, and their message to the ends of the world. Psalm 19:4

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.

The earth is the Lord's for he made it: Come let us adore him.

The Lessons

Psalm 41

⁽¹⁾ Blessed is he who considers the poor; The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. ⁽²⁾ The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. ⁽³⁾ The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed. ⁽⁴⁾ I said, 'LORD, be merciful to me; Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.'

⁽⁵⁾ My enemies speak evil of me: 'When will he die, and his name perish?' ⁽⁶⁾ And if he comes to see me, he speaks lies; His heart gathers iniquity to itself; When he goes out, he tells it. ⁽⁷⁾ All who hate me whisper together against me; Against me they devise my hurt. ⁽⁸⁾ An evil disease,' they say, 'clings to him. And now that he lies down, he will rise up no more.'

⁽⁹⁾ Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me. ⁽¹⁰⁾ But You, O LORD, be merciful to me, and raise me up, That I may repay them. ⁽¹¹⁾ By this I know that You are well pleased with me, Because my enemy does not triumph over me. ⁽¹²⁾ As for me, You uphold me in my integrity, And set me before Your face forever.

⁽¹³⁾ Blessed be the LORD God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! Amen and Amen.

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 52

⁽¹⁾ Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? The goodness of God endures continually. ⁽²⁾ Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. ⁽³⁾ You love evil more than good, Lying rather than speaking righteousness. Selah ⁽⁴⁾ You love all devouring words, You deceitful tongue.

⁽⁵⁾ God shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah ⁽⁶⁾ The righteous also shall see and fear, And shall laugh at him, saying, ⁽⁷⁾ Here is the man who did not make God his strength, But trusted in the abundance of his riches, And strengthened himself in his wickedness.' ⁽⁸⁾ But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.

⁽⁹⁾ I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good.

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.

Job Chapter 32

⁽¹⁾ So these three men ceased answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. ⁽²⁾ Then the wrath of Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, was aroused against Job; his wrath was aroused because he justified himself rather than God. ⁽³⁾ Also against his three friends his wrath was aroused, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job. ⁽⁴⁾ Now because they were years older than he, Elihu had waited to speak to Job.

⁽⁵⁾ When Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of these three men, his wrath was aroused. ⁽⁶⁾ So Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, answered and said: 'I am young in years, and you are very old; Therefore I was afraid, And dared not declare my opinion to you. ⁽⁷⁾ I said, 'Age should speak, And multitude of years should teach wisdom.' ⁽⁸⁾ But there is a spirit in man, And the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding.

⁽⁹⁾ Great men are not always wise, Nor do the aged always understand justice. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Therefore I say, 'Listen to me, I also will declare my opinion.' ⁽¹⁹⁾ Indeed my belly is like wine that has no vent; It is ready to burst like new wineskins. ⁽²⁰⁾ I will speak, that I may find relief; I must open my lips and answer. ⁽²¹⁾ Let me not, I pray, show partiality to anyone; Nor let me flatter any man. ⁽²²⁾ For I do not know how to flatter, Else my Maker would soon take me away.

⁽¹⁾ But please, Job, hear my speech, And listen to all my words. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Man is also chastened with pain on his bed, And with strong pain in many of his bones, ⁽²⁰⁾ So that his life abhors bread, And his soul succulent food. ⁽²¹⁾ His flesh wastes away from sight, And his bones stick out which once were not seen. ⁽²²⁾ Yes, his soul draws near the Pit, And his life to the executioners.

⁽²³⁾ If there is a messenger for him, A mediator, one among a thousand, To show man His uprightness, ⁽²⁴⁾ Then He is gracious to him, and says, 'Deliver him from going down to the Pit; I have found a ransom'; ⁽²⁵⁾ His flesh shall be young like a child's, He shall return to the days of his youth. ⁽²⁶⁾ He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him, He shall see His face with joy, For He restores to man His righteousness.

⁽²⁷⁾ Then he looks at men and says, 'I have sinned, and perverted what was right, And it did not profit me.' ⁽²⁸⁾ He will redeem his soul from going down to the Pit, And his life shall see the light.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Acts Chapter 13

⁽⁴⁴⁾ On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God. ⁽⁴⁵⁾ But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy; and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul. ⁽⁴⁶⁾ Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, 'It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. ⁽⁴⁷⁾ For so the Lord has commanded us: 'I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.' '

⁽⁴⁸⁾ Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. ⁽⁴⁹⁾ And the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region. ⁽⁵⁰⁾ But the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. ⁽⁵¹⁾ But they shook off the dust from their feet against them, and came to Iconium.

⁽⁵²⁾ And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 10

⁽¹⁹⁾ Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. ⁽²⁰⁾ And many of them said, 'He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?' ⁽²¹⁾ Others said, 'These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?' ⁽²²⁾ Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.

⁽²³⁾ And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. ⁽²⁴⁾ Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, 'How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.' ⁽²⁵⁾ Jesus answered them, 'I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. ⁽²⁶⁾ But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.

⁽²⁷⁾ My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. ⁽²⁸⁾ And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. ⁽²⁹⁾ My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. ⁽³⁰⁾ I and My Father are one.'

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Song of the Redeemed       Revelation 15:3 to 4  
O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done,
  surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth,
 O King of all the ages.

Who can fail to do you homage, Lord,
and sing the praises of your Name?
  for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will draw near
and fall down before you,
  because your just and holy works have been revealed.
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.

The First Song of Isaiah       Isaiah 12:2 to 6
 
Surely, it is God who saves me;
  I will trust in him and not be afraid.
For the Lord is my stronghold
and my sure defense,
  and he will be my Savior.
Therefore you shall draw water with rejoicing
  from the springs of salvation.
And on that day you shall say,
  Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his Name;
Make his deeds known among the peoples;
  see that they remember that his Name is exalted.
Sing the praises of the Lord,
for he has done great things,
  and this is known in all the world.
Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy,
  for the great one in the midst of you is the Holy One of Israel.
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.


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:  Proper 18 The Sunday closest to September 7
Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength, so you never forsake those who make their boast of your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: O God, the King eternal, whose light divides the day from the night and turns the shadow of death into the morning: Drive far from us all wrong desires, incline our hearts to keep your law, and guide our feet into the way of peace; that, having done your will with cheerfulness while it was day, we may, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks; 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