Evening Prayer

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   Alleluia

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 66

⁽¹⁾ Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth! ⁽²⁾ Sing out the honor of His name; Make His praise glorious. ⁽³⁾ Say to God, 'How awesome are Your works! Through the greatness of Your power Your enemies shall submit themselves to You. ⁽⁴⁾ All the earth shall worship You And sing praises to You; They shall sing praises to Your name.' Selah

⁽⁵⁾ Come and see the works of God; He is awesome in His doing toward the sons of men. ⁽⁶⁾ He turned the sea into dry land; They went through the river on foot. There we will rejoice in Him. ⁽⁷⁾ He rules by His power forever; His eyes observe the nations; Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah ⁽⁸⁾ Oh, bless our God, you peoples! And make the voice of His praise to be heard,

⁽⁹⁾ Who keeps our soul among the living, And does not allow our feet to be moved. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined. ⁽¹¹⁾ You brought us into the net; You laid affliction on our backs. ⁽¹²⁾ You have caused men to ride over our heads; We went through fire and through water; But You brought us out to rich fulfillment.

⁽¹³⁾ I will go into Your house with burnt offerings; I will pay You my vows, ⁽¹⁴⁾ Which my lips have uttered And my mouth has spoken when I was in trouble. ⁽¹⁵⁾ I will offer You burnt sacrifices of fat animals, With the sweet aroma of rams; I will offer bulls with goats. Selah ⁽¹⁶⁾ Come and hear, all you who fear God, And I will declare what He has done for my soul.

⁽¹⁷⁾ I cried to Him with my mouth, And He was extolled with my tongue. ⁽¹⁸⁾ If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear. ⁽¹⁹⁾ But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer. ⁽²⁰⁾ Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer, Nor His mercy from me!

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 67

⁽¹⁾ God be merciful to us and bless us, And cause His face to shine upon us. Selah ⁽²⁾ That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations. ⁽³⁾ Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. ⁽⁴⁾ Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge the people righteously, And govern the nations on earth. Selah

⁽⁵⁾ Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. ⁽⁶⁾ Then the earth shall yield her increase; God, our own God, shall bless us. ⁽⁷⁾ God shall bless us, And all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.

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 Samuel Chapter 2

⁽¹⁾ And Hannah prayed and said: 'My heart rejoices in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD. I smile at my enemies, Because I rejoice in Your salvation. ⁽²⁾ No one is holy like the LORD, For there is none besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God. ⁽³⁾ Talk no more so very proudly; Let no arrogance come from your mouth, For the LORD is the God of knowledge; And by Him actions are weighed. ⁽⁴⁾ The bows of the mighty men are broken, And those who stumbled are girded with strength.

⁽⁵⁾ Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, And the hungry have ceased to hunger. Even the barren has borne seven, And she who has many children has become feeble. ⁽⁶⁾ The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up. ⁽⁷⁾ The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. ⁽⁸⁾ He raises the poor from the dust And lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory. 'For the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, And He has set the world upon them.

⁽⁹⁾ He will guard the feet of His saints, But the wicked shall be silent in darkness. 'For by strength no man shall prevail. ⁽¹⁰⁾ The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken in pieces; From heaven He will thunder against them. The LORD will judge the ends of the earth. 'He will give strength to His king, And exalt the horn of His anointed.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Titus Chapter 2

⁽¹⁾ But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: ⁽²⁾ that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; ⁽³⁾ the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things -- ⁽⁴⁾ that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,

⁽⁵⁾ to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed. ⁽⁶⁾ Likewise exhort the young men to be sober-minded, ⁽⁷⁾ in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, ⁽⁸⁾ sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.

⁽⁹⁾ Exhort bondservants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well pleasing in all things, not answering back, ⁽¹⁰⁾ not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 1

⁽²⁶⁾ Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ⁽²⁷⁾ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. ⁽²⁸⁾ And having come in, the angel said to her, 'Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!' ⁽²⁹⁾ But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.

⁽³⁰⁾ Then the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ⁽³¹⁾ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. ⁽³²⁾ He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. ⁽³³⁾ And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.'

⁽³⁴⁾ Then Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, since I do not know a man?' ⁽³⁵⁾ And the angel answered and said to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. ⁽³⁶⁾ Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ⁽³⁷⁾ For with God nothing will be impossible.'

⁽³⁸⁾ Then Mary said, 'Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her.

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:  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, 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