Evening Prayer

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

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 55

⁽¹⁾ Give ear to my prayer, O God, And do not hide Yourself from my supplication. ⁽²⁾ Attend to me, and hear me; I am restless in my complaint, and moan noisily, ⁽³⁾ Because of the voice of the enemy, Because of the oppression of the wicked; For they bring down trouble upon me, And in wrath they hate me. ⁽⁴⁾ My heart is severely pained within me, And the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

⁽⁵⁾ Fearfulness and trembling have come upon me, And horror has overwhelmed me. ⁽⁶⁾ So I said, 'Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. ⁽⁷⁾ Indeed, I would wander far off, And remain in the wilderness. Selah ⁽⁸⁾ I would hasten my escape From the windy storm and tempest.'

⁽⁹⁾ Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues, For I have seen violence and strife in the city. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Day and night they go around it on its walls; Iniquity and trouble are also in the midst of it. ⁽¹¹⁾ Destruction is in its midst; Oppression and deceit do not depart from its streets. ⁽¹²⁾ For it is not an enemy who reproaches me; Then I could bear it. Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me; Then I could hide from him.

⁽¹³⁾ But it was you, a man my equal, My companion and my acquaintance. ⁽¹⁴⁾ We took sweet counsel together, And walked to the house of God in the throng. ⁽¹⁵⁾ Let death seize them; Let them go down alive into hell, For wickedness is in their dwellings and among them. ⁽¹⁶⁾ As for me, I will call upon God, And the LORD shall save me.

⁽¹⁷⁾ Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, And He shall hear my voice. ⁽¹⁸⁾ He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, For there were many against me. ⁽¹⁹⁾ God will hear, and afflict them, Even He who abides from of old. Selah Because they do not change, Therefore they do not fear God. ⁽²⁰⁾ He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him; He has broken his covenant.

⁽²¹⁾ The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, But war was in his heart; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords. ⁽²²⁾ Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved. ⁽²³⁾ But You, O God, shall bring them down to the pit of destruction; Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; But I will trust in You.

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 38

⁽¹⁾ Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: ⁽²⁾ Who is this who darkens counsel By words without knowledge? ⁽³⁾ Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me. ⁽⁴⁾ Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.

⁽⁵⁾ Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? ⁽⁶⁾ To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, ⁽⁷⁾ When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy? ⁽⁸⁾ Or who shut in the sea with doors, When it burst forth and issued from the womb;

⁽⁹⁾ When I made the clouds its garment, And thick darkness its swaddling band; ⁽¹⁰⁾ When I fixed My limit for it, And set bars and doors; ⁽¹¹⁾ When I said, 'This far you may come, but no farther, And here your proud waves must stop!' ⁽¹²⁾ Have you commanded the morning since your days began, And caused the dawn to know its place,

⁽¹³⁾ That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, And the wicked be shaken out of it? ⁽¹⁴⁾ It takes on form like clay under a seal, And stands out like a garment. ⁽¹⁵⁾ From the wicked their light is withheld, And the upraised arm is broken. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Have you entered the springs of the sea? Or have you walked in search of the depths?

⁽¹⁷⁾ Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Acts Chapter 15

⁽²²⁾ Then it pleased the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas who was also named Barsabas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren. ⁽²³⁾ They wrote this letter by them: The apostles, the elders, and the brethren, To the brethren who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings. ⁽²⁴⁾ Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, saying, 'You must be circumcised and keep the law' -- to whom we gave no such commandment -- ⁽²⁵⁾ it seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

⁽²⁶⁾ men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁽²⁷⁾ We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will also report the same things by word of mouth. ⁽²⁸⁾ For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: ⁽²⁹⁾ that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.

⁽³⁰⁾ So when they were sent off, they came to Antioch; and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the letter. ⁽³¹⁾ When they had read it, they rejoiced over its encouragement. ⁽³²⁾ Now Judas and Silas, themselves being prophets also, exhorted and strengthened the brethren with many words. ⁽³³⁾ And after they had stayed there for a time, they were sent back with greetings from the brethren to the apostles.

⁽³⁴⁾ However, it seemed good to Silas to remain there.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 11

⁽⁴⁵⁾ Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him. ⁽⁴⁶⁾ But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did. ⁽⁴⁷⁾ Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, 'What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. ⁽⁴⁸⁾ If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.'

⁽⁴⁹⁾ And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, 'You know nothing at all, ⁽⁵⁰⁾ nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish.' ⁽⁵¹⁾ Now this he did not say on his own authority; but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, ⁽⁵²⁾ and not for that nation only, but also that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad.

⁽⁵³⁾ Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to death. ⁽⁵⁴⁾ Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there into the country near the wilderness, to a city called Ephraim, and there remained with His disciples.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

A Song of Creation   Prayer of Manasseh 1 to 2, 4, 6 to 7, 11 to 15
Invocation
Glorify the Lord,
all you works of the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

The People of God

Let the people of God glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
Glorify the Lord,
O priests and servants of the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Glorify the Lord,
O spirits and souls of the righteous,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
You that are holy and humble of heart,
glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Doxology
Let us glorify the Lord:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him 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:  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: Almighty God, who after the creation of the world rested from all your works and sanctified a day of rest for all your creatures: Grant that we, putting away all earthly anxieties, may be duly prepared for the service of your sanctuary, and that our rest here upon earth may be a preparation for the eternal rest promised to your people in heaven; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. 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

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20,21