Evening Prayer

Today is the Feast of SS. Simon & Jude -- Click for Readings
Ordinary Time
The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him. Habakkuk 2:20

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 45

⁽¹⁾ My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. ⁽²⁾ You are fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever. ⁽³⁾ Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One, With Your glory and Your majesty. ⁽⁴⁾ And in Your majesty ride prosperously because of truth, humility, and righteousness; And Your right hand shall teach You awesome things.

⁽⁵⁾ Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the King's enemies; The peoples fall under You. ⁽⁶⁾ Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. ⁽⁷⁾ You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions. ⁽⁸⁾ All Your garments are scented with myrrh and aloes and cassia, Out of the ivory palaces, by which they have made You glad.

⁽⁹⁾ Kings' daughters are among Your honorable women; At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Listen, O daughter, Consider and incline your ear; Forget your own people also, and your father's house; ⁽¹¹⁾ So the King will greatly desire your beauty; Because He is your Lord, worship Him. ⁽¹²⁾ And the daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; The rich among the people will seek your favor.

⁽¹³⁾ The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace; Her clothing is woven with gold. ⁽¹⁴⁾ She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors; The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to You. ⁽¹⁵⁾ With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought; They shall enter the King's palace. ⁽¹⁶⁾ Instead of Your fathers shall be Your sons, Whom You shall make princes in all the earth.

⁽¹⁷⁾ I will make Your name to be remembered in all generations; Therefore the people shall praise You forever and ever.

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.

Ezra Chapter 5

⁽¹⁾ Then the prophet Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophets, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. ⁽²⁾ So Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak rose up and began to build the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them, helping them. ⁽³⁾ At the same time Tattenai the governor of the region beyond the River and Shethar-Boznai and their companions came to them and spoke thus to them: 'Who has commanded you to build this temple and finish this wall?' ⁽⁴⁾ Then, accordingly, we told them the names of the men who were constructing this building.

⁽⁵⁾ But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, so that they could not make them cease till a report could go to Darius. Then a written answer was returned concerning this matter. ⁽⁶⁾ This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai sent: The governor of the region beyond the River, and Shethar-Boznai, and his companions, the Persians who were in the region beyond the River, to Darius the king. ⁽⁷⁾ They sent a letter to him, in which was written thus -- To Darius the king: All peace. ⁽⁸⁾ Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judea, to the temple of the great God, which is being built with heavy stones, and timber is being laid in the walls; and this work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands.

⁽⁹⁾ Then we asked those elders, and spoke thus to them: 'Who commanded you to build this temple and to finish these walls?' ⁽¹⁰⁾ We also asked them their names to inform you, that we might write the names of the men who were chief among them. ⁽¹¹⁾ And thus they returned us an answer, saying: 'We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. ⁽¹²⁾ But because our fathers provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and carried the people away to Babylon.

⁽¹³⁾ However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to build this house of God. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Also, the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple that was in Jerusalem and carried into the temple of Babylon -- those King Cyrus took from the temple of Babylon, and they were given to one named Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor. ⁽¹⁵⁾ And he said to him, 'Take these articles; go, carry them to the temple site that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its former site.' ⁽¹⁶⁾ Then the same Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of God which is in Jerusalem; but from that time even until now it has been under construction, and it is not finished.'

⁽¹⁷⁾ Now therefore, if it seems good to the king, let a search be made in the king's treasure house, which is there in Babylon, whether it is so that a decree was issued by King Cyrus to build this house of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send us his pleasure concerning this matter.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Revelation Chapter 4

⁽¹⁾ After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, 'Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.' ⁽²⁾ Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. ⁽³⁾ And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. ⁽⁴⁾ Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads.

⁽⁵⁾ And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. ⁽⁶⁾ Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. ⁽⁷⁾ The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. ⁽⁸⁾ The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: 'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!'

⁽⁹⁾ Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, ⁽¹⁰⁾ the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: ⁽¹¹⁾ You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Matthew Chapter 13

⁽¹⁾ On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. ⁽²⁾ And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. ⁽³⁾ Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: 'Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁽⁴⁾ And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.

⁽⁵⁾ Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. ⁽⁶⁾ But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. ⁽⁷⁾ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. ⁽⁸⁾ But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

⁽⁹⁾ He who has ears to hear, let him hear!'

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

Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers;
you are worthy of praise; glory to you.
Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you in the splendor of your temple;
on the throne of your majesty, glory to you.
Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you, beholding the depths;
in the high vault of heaven, glory to you.
Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.



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 25 The Sunday closest to October 26
Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; 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: 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