Evening Prayer

Today is the Feast of St. Mary the Virgin -- 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 mercy of the Lord is everlasting: Come let us adore him.

The Lessons

Psalm 102

⁽¹⁾ Hear my prayer, O LORD, And let my cry come to You. ⁽²⁾ Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; Incline Your ear to me; In the day that I call, answer me speedily. ⁽³⁾ For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned like a hearth. ⁽⁴⁾ My heart is stricken and withered like grass, So that I forget to eat my bread.

⁽⁵⁾ Because of the sound of my groaning My bones cling to my skin. ⁽⁶⁾ I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert. ⁽⁷⁾ I lie awake, And am like a sparrow alone on the housetop. ⁽⁸⁾ My enemies reproach me all day long, Those who deride me swear an oath against me.

⁽⁹⁾ For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, ⁽¹⁰⁾ Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. ⁽¹¹⁾ My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass. ⁽¹²⁾ But You, O LORD, shall endure forever, And the remembrance of Your name to all generations.

⁽¹³⁾ You will arise and have mercy on Zion; For the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come. ⁽¹⁴⁾ For Your servants take pleasure in her stones, And show favor to her dust. ⁽¹⁵⁾ So the nations shall fear the name of the LORD, And all the kings of the earth Your glory. ⁽¹⁶⁾ For the LORD shall build up Zion; He shall appear in His glory.

⁽¹⁷⁾ He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, And shall not despise their prayer. ⁽¹⁸⁾ This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the LORD. ⁽¹⁹⁾ For He looked down from the height of His sanctuary; From heaven the LORD viewed the earth, ⁽²⁰⁾ To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To release those appointed to death,

⁽²¹⁾ To declare the name of the LORD in Zion, And His praise in Jerusalem, ⁽²²⁾ When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the LORD. ⁽²³⁾ He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days. ⁽²⁴⁾ I said, 'O my God, Do not take me away in the midst of my days; Your years are throughout all generations.

⁽²⁵⁾ Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. ⁽²⁶⁾ They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. ⁽²⁷⁾ But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. ⁽²⁸⁾ The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before 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.

2 Samuel Chapter 15

⁽¹⁹⁾ Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, 'Why are you also going with us? Return and remain with the king. For you are a foreigner and also an exile from your own place. ⁽²⁰⁾ In fact, you came only yesterday. Should I make you wander up and down with us today, since I go I know not where? Return, and take your brethren back. Mercy and truth be with you.' ⁽²¹⁾ And Ittai answered the king and said, 'As the LORD lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in whatever place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also your servant will be.' ⁽²²⁾ So David said to Ittai, 'Go, and cross over.' Then Ittai the Gittite and all his men and all the little ones who were with him crossed over.

⁽²³⁾ And all the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people crossed over. The king himself also crossed over the Brook Kidron, and all the people crossed over toward the way of the wilderness. ⁽²⁴⁾ There was Zadok also, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God, and Abiathar went up until all the people had finished crossing over from the city. ⁽²⁵⁾ Then the king said to Zadok, 'Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the LORD, He will bring me back and show me both it and His dwelling place. ⁽²⁶⁾ But if He says thus: 'I have no delight in you,' here I am, let Him do to me as seems good to Him.'

⁽²⁷⁾ The king also said to Zadok the priest, 'Are you not a seer? Return to the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. ⁽²⁸⁾ See, I will wait in the plains of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.' ⁽²⁹⁾ Therefore Zadok and Abiathar carried the ark of God back to Jerusalem. And they remained there. ⁽³⁰⁾ So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up.

⁽³¹⁾ Then someone told David, saying, 'Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.' And David said, 'O LORD, I pray, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!' ⁽³²⁾ Now it happened when David had come to the top of the mountain, where he worshiped God -- there was Hushai the Archite coming to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head. ⁽³³⁾ David said to him, 'If you go on with me, then you will become a burden to me. ⁽³⁴⁾ But if you return to the city, and say to Absalom, 'I will be your servant, O king; as I was your father's servant previously, so I will now also be your servant,' then you may defeat the counsel of Ahithophel for me.

⁽³⁵⁾ And do you not have Zadok and Abiathar the priests with you there? Therefore it will be that whatever you hear from the king's house, you shall tell to Zadok and Abiathar the priests. ⁽³⁶⁾ Indeed they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok's son, and Jonathan, Abiathar's son; and by them you shall send me everything you hear.' ⁽³⁷⁾ So Hushai, David's friend, went into the city. And Absalom came into Jerusalem.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Acts Chapter 21

⁽³⁷⁾ Then as Paul was about to be led into the barracks, he said to the commander, 'May I speak to you?' He replied, 'Can you speak Greek? ⁽³⁸⁾ Are you not the Egyptian who some time ago stirred up a rebellion and led the four thousand assassins out into the wilderness?' ⁽³⁹⁾ But Paul said, 'I am a Jew from Tarsus, in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city; and I implore you, permit me to speak to the people.' ⁽⁴⁰⁾ So when he had given him permission, Paul stood on the stairs and motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great silence, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying,

⁽¹⁾ Brethren and fathers, hear my defense before you now.' ⁽²⁾ And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent. Then he said: ⁽³⁾ I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers' law, and was zealous toward God as you all are today. ⁽⁴⁾ I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women,

⁽⁵⁾ as also the high priest bears me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished. ⁽⁶⁾ Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. ⁽⁷⁾ And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?' ⁽⁸⁾ So I answered, 'Who are You, Lord?' And He said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.'

⁽⁹⁾ And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. ⁽¹⁰⁾ So I said, 'What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.' ⁽¹¹⁾ And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus. ⁽¹²⁾ Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there,

⁽¹³⁾ came to me; and he stood and said to me, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight.' And at that same hour I looked up at him. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Then he said, 'The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. ⁽¹⁵⁾ For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. ⁽¹⁶⁾ And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Mark Chapter 10

⁽⁴⁶⁾ Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. ⁽⁴⁷⁾ And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, 'Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!' ⁽⁴⁸⁾ Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, 'Son of David, have mercy on me!' ⁽⁴⁹⁾ So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, 'Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you.'

⁽⁵⁰⁾ And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. ⁽⁵¹⁾ So Jesus answered and said to him, 'What do you want Me to do for you?' The blind man said to Him, 'Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.' ⁽⁵²⁾ Then Jesus said to him, 'Go your way; your faith has made you well.' And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The Second Song of Isaiah      Isaiah 55:6 to 11

Seek the Lord while he wills to be found;
call upon him when he draws near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways
and the evil ones their thoughts;
And let them turn to the Lord, and he will have compassion,
and to our God, for he will richly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as rain and snow fall from the heavens
and return not again, but water the earth,
Bringing forth life and giving growth,
seed for sowing and bread for eating,
So is my word that goes forth from my mouth;
it will not return to me empty;
But it will accomplish that which I have purposed,
and prosper in that for which I sent it.
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 14 The Sunday closest to August 10
Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through 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