Evening Prayer

Advent
Watch, for you know not when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning; lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. Mark 13:35, 36

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

Venite
The Antiphon:

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

Our King and Savior now draws near: Come, let us adore him.

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.

Isaiah Chapter 5

⁽¹³⁾ Therefore my people have gone into captivity, Because they have no knowledge; Their honorable men are famished, And their multitude dried up with thirst. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Therefore Sheol has enlarged itself And opened its mouth beyond measure; Their glory and their multitude and their pomp, And he who is jubilant, shall descend into it. ⁽¹⁵⁾ People shall be brought down, Each man shall be humbled, And the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled. ⁽¹⁶⁾ But the LORD of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, And God who is holy shall be hallowed in righteousness.

⁽¹⁷⁾ Then the lambs shall feed in their pasture, And in the waste places of the fat ones strangers shall eat. ⁽²⁴⁾ Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble, And the flame consumes the chaff, So their root will be as rottenness, And their blossom will ascend like dust; Because they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts, And despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. ⁽²⁵⁾ Therefore the anger of the LORD is aroused against His people; He has stretched out His hand against them And stricken them, And the hills trembled. Their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

1 Thessalonians Chapter 5

⁽¹²⁾ And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, ⁽¹³⁾ and to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. Be at peace among yourselves. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. ⁽¹⁵⁾ See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.

⁽¹⁶⁾ Rejoice always, ⁽¹⁷⁾ pray without ceasing, ⁽¹⁸⁾ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Do not quench the Spirit.

⁽²⁰⁾ Do not despise prophecies. ⁽²¹⁾ Test all things; hold fast what is good. ⁽²²⁾ Abstain from every form of evil. ⁽²³⁾ Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁽²⁴⁾ He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. ⁽²⁵⁾ Brethren, pray for us. ⁽²⁶⁾ Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. ⁽²⁷⁾ I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.

⁽²⁸⁾ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 21

⁽²⁹⁾ Then He spoke to them a parable: 'Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. ⁽³⁰⁾ When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. ⁽³¹⁾ So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. ⁽³²⁾ Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place.

⁽³³⁾ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. ⁽³⁴⁾ But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. ⁽³⁵⁾ For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. ⁽³⁶⁾ Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.'

⁽³⁷⁾ And in the daytime He was teaching in the temple, but at night He went out and stayed on the mountain called Olivet. ⁽³⁸⁾ Then early in the morning all the people came to Him in the temple to hear Him.

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

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.


The Third Song of Isaiah       Isaiah 60:1 to 3, 11a, 14c, 18 to 19
Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land;
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise,
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open;
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land,
ruin or destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation,
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day;
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.
The Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
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:  Second Sunday of Advent
Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and 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