Evening Prayer

--Today is the Feast of Saint John of the Cross--
Advent
In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3

Saint and Major Saints' Days
We give thanks to the Father, who has made us worthy to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. Colossians 1:12

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 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.

Isaiah Chapter 8

⁽¹⁶⁾ Bind up the testimony, Seal the law among my disciples. ⁽¹⁷⁾ And I will wait on the LORD, Who hides His face from the house of Jacob; And I will hope in Him. ⁽¹⁸⁾ Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel From the LORD of hosts, Who dwells in Mount Zion. ⁽¹⁹⁾ And when they say to you, 'Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,' should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living?

⁽²⁰⁾ To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. ⁽²¹⁾ They will pass through it hard pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward. ⁽²²⁾ Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness. ⁽¹⁾ Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, As when at first He lightly esteemed The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

2 Peter Chapter 1

⁽¹⁾ Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: ⁽²⁾ Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, ⁽³⁾ as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, ⁽⁴⁾ by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

⁽⁵⁾ But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, ⁽⁶⁾ to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, ⁽⁷⁾ to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. ⁽⁸⁾ For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁽⁹⁾ For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; ⁽¹¹⁾ for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 22

⁽³⁹⁾ Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. ⁽⁴⁰⁾ When He came to the place, He said to them, 'Pray that you may not enter into temptation.' ⁽⁴¹⁾ And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, ⁽⁴²⁾ saying, 'Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.'

⁽⁴³⁾ Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. ⁽⁴⁴⁾ And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. ⁽⁴⁵⁾ When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. ⁽⁴⁶⁾ Then He said to them, 'Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.'

⁽⁴⁷⁾ And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. ⁽⁴⁸⁾ But Jesus said to him, 'Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?' ⁽⁴⁹⁾ When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, 'Lord, shall we strike with the sword?' ⁽⁵⁰⁾ And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

⁽⁵¹⁾ But Jesus answered and said, 'Permit even this.' And He touched his ear and healed him. ⁽⁵²⁾ Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, 'Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs? ⁽⁵³⁾ When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.'

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 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:  Third Sunday of Advent
Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, 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