Evening Prayer - December 20, 2026

Today's Readings

Psalm 24:1-10

Psalm 29:1-11

Isaiah 42:1-12

Ephesians 6:10-20

John 3:16-21

Advent
The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. Isaiah 40:5

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

ⓘ 'Venite' is Latin for 'O Come,' the opening word of Psalm 95: Venite exultemus Domino ('O Come, let us sing to the LORD').

Psalm 95:1 to 7
Come, let us sing to the Lord;
   let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving
   and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God,
   and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth,
   and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it,
   and his hands have molded the dry land.

Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee,
   and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
    Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!

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 24

⁽¹⁾ The earth is the LORD's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.⁽²⁾ For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters.⁽³⁾ Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place?⁽⁴⁾ He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully.

⁽⁵⁾ He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation.⁽⁶⁾ This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah⁽⁷⁾ Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in.⁽⁸⁾ Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle.

⁽⁹⁾ Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in.⁽¹⁰⁾ Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah

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 29

⁽¹⁾ Give unto the LORD, O you mighty ones, Give unto the LORD glory and strength.⁽²⁾ Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name; Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.⁽³⁾ The voice of the LORD is over the waters; The God of glory thunders; The LORD is over many waters.⁽⁴⁾ The voice of the LORD is powerful; The voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

⁽⁵⁾ The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars, Yes, the LORD splinters the cedars of Lebanon.⁽⁶⁾ He makes them also skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild ox.⁽⁷⁾ The voice of the LORD divides the flames of fire.⁽⁸⁾ The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; The LORD shakes the Wilderness of Kadesh.

⁽⁹⁾ The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth, And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everyone says, 'Glory!'⁽¹⁰⁾ The LORD sat enthroned at the Flood, And the LORD sits as King forever.⁽¹¹⁾ The LORD will give strength to His people; The LORD will bless His people with 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.

Isaiah Chapter 42

⁽¹⁾ Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.⁽²⁾ He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.⁽³⁾ A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.⁽⁴⁾ He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands shall wait for His law.'

⁽⁵⁾ Thus says God the LORD, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it, Who gives breath to the people on it, And spirit to those who walk on it:⁽⁶⁾ I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles,⁽⁷⁾ To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the prison, Those who sit in darkness from the prison house.⁽⁸⁾ I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images.

⁽⁹⁾ Behold, the former things have come to pass, And new things I declare; Before they spring forth I tell you of them.'⁽¹⁰⁾ Sing to the LORD a new song, And His praise from the ends of the earth, You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, You coastlands and you inhabitants of them!⁽¹¹⁾ Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice, The villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing, Let them shout from the top of the mountains.⁽¹²⁾ Let them give glory to the LORD, And declare His praise in the coastlands.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Ephesians Chapter 6

⁽¹⁰⁾ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.⁽¹¹⁾ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.⁽¹²⁾ For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.⁽¹³⁾ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

⁽¹⁴⁾ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,⁽¹⁵⁾ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;⁽¹⁶⁾ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.⁽¹⁷⁾ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

⁽¹⁸⁾ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints --⁽¹⁹⁾ and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,⁽²⁰⁾ for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 3

⁽¹⁶⁾ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.⁽¹⁷⁾ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.⁽¹⁸⁾ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.⁽¹⁹⁾ And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

⁽²⁰⁾ For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.⁽²¹⁾ But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.'

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

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. Amen.

Suffrages

ⓘ A simple prayer to God for help, mercy, or intercession, rooted in the Latin word for support.

Show us your mercy, O Lord;
And grant us your salvation.
Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
Let your people sing with joy.
Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
For only in you can we live in safety.
Lord, keep this nation under your care;
And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
Let your way be known upon earth;
Your saving health among all nations.
Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
And sustain us by your Holy Spirit.

Seasonal Collect: Fourth Sunday of Advent
Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation, that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a mansion prepared for himself; 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.

Closing Prayers

Thanksgiving
Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory, and, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up ourselves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.

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