Evening Prayer

--Today is the Holy Day of the Beheading of John the Baptist--
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
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   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 16

⁽¹⁾ Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. ⁽²⁾ O my soul, you have said to the LORD, 'You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You.' ⁽³⁾ As for the saints who are on the earth, 'They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.' ⁽⁴⁾ Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, Nor take up their names on my lips.

⁽⁵⁾ O LORD,You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. ⁽⁶⁾ The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance. ⁽⁷⁾ I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons. ⁽⁸⁾ I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.

⁽⁹⁾ Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. ⁽¹¹⁾ You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

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 17

⁽¹⁾ Hear a just cause, O LORD, Attend to my cry; Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips. ⁽²⁾ Let my vindication come from Your presence; Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright. ⁽³⁾ You have tested my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tried me and have found nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. ⁽⁴⁾ Concerning the works of men, By the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.

⁽⁵⁾ Uphold my steps in Your paths, That my footsteps may not slip. ⁽⁶⁾ I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech. ⁽⁷⁾ Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You From those who rise up against them. ⁽⁸⁾ Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,

⁽⁹⁾ From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me. ⁽¹⁰⁾ They have closed up their fat hearts; With their mouths they speak proudly. ⁽¹¹⁾ They have now surrounded us in our steps; They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth, ⁽¹²⁾ As a lion is eager to tear his prey, And like a young lion lurking in secret places.

⁽¹³⁾ Arise, O LORD, Confront him, cast him down; Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword, ⁽¹⁴⁾ With Your hand from men, O LORD, From men of the world who have their portion in this life, And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure. They are satisfied with children, And leave the rest of their possession for their babes. ⁽¹⁵⁾ As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.

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.

1 Kings Chapter 5

⁽¹⁾ Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, because he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram had always loved David. ⁽²⁾ Then Solomon sent to Hiram, saying: ⁽³⁾ You know how my father David could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God because of the wars which were fought against him on every side, until the LORD put his foes under the soles of his feet. ⁽⁴⁾ But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor evil occurrence.

⁽⁵⁾ And behold, I propose to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spoke to my father David, saying, 'Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build the house for My name.' ⁽⁶⁾ Now therefore, command that they cut down cedars for me from Lebanon; and my servants will be with your servants, and I will pay you wages for your servants according to whatever you say. For you know there is none among us who has skill to cut timber like the Sidonians. ⁽¹⁾ And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD. ⁽⁷⁾ And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Acts Chapter 28

⁽¹⁾ Now when they had escaped, they then found out that the island was called Malta. ⁽²⁾ And the natives showed us unusual kindness; for they kindled a fire and made us all welcome, because of the rain that was falling and because of the cold. ⁽³⁾ But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. ⁽⁴⁾ So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, 'No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.'

⁽⁵⁾ But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. ⁽⁶⁾ However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god. ⁽⁷⁾ In that region there was an estate of the leading citizen of the island, whose name was Publius, who received us and entertained us courteously for three days. ⁽⁸⁾ And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery. Paul went in to him and prayed, and he laid his hands on him and healed him.

⁽⁹⁾ So when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed. ⁽¹⁰⁾ They also honored us in many ways; and when we departed, they provided such things as were necessary. ⁽¹¹⁾ After three months we sailed in an Alexandrian ship whose figurehead was the Twin Brothers, which had wintered at the island. ⁽¹²⁾ And landing at Syracuse, we stayed three days.

⁽¹³⁾ From there we circled round and reached Rhegium. And after one day the south wind blew; and the next day we came to Puteoli, ⁽¹⁴⁾ where we found brethren, and were invited to stay with them seven days. And so we went toward Rome. ⁽¹⁵⁾ And from there, when the brethren heard about us, they came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and Three Inns. When Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Now when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard; but Paul was permitted to dwell by himself with the soldier who guarded him.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Mark Chapter 14

⁽²⁷⁾ Then Jesus said to them, 'All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: 'I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.' ⁽²⁸⁾ But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.' ⁽²⁹⁾ Peter said to Him, 'Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.' ⁽³⁰⁾ Jesus said to him, 'Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.'

⁽³¹⁾ But he spoke more vehemently, 'If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!' And they all said likewise. ⁽³²⁾ Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, 'Sit here while I pray.' ⁽³³⁾ And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. ⁽³⁴⁾ Then He said to them, 'My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.'

⁽³⁵⁾ He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. ⁽³⁶⁾ And He said, 'Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.' ⁽³⁷⁾ Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, 'Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? ⁽³⁸⁾ Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.'

⁽³⁹⁾ Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. ⁽⁴⁰⁾ And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. ⁽⁴¹⁾ Then He came the third time and said to them, 'Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁽⁴²⁾ Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.'

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 16 The Sunday closest to August 24
Grant, O merciful God, that your Church, being gathered together in unity by your Holy Spirit, may show forth your power among all peoples, to the glory of your Name; 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