Evening Prayer

Epiphany
From the rising of the sun to its setting my Name shall be great among the nations, and in every place incense shall be offered to my Name, and a pure offering: for my Name shall be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 1:11

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 Lord has shown forth his glory: Come let us adore him.

The Lessons

Psalm 97

⁽¹⁾ The LORD reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad! ⁽²⁾ Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. ⁽³⁾ A fire goes before Him, And burns up His enemies round about. ⁽⁴⁾ His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles.

⁽⁵⁾ The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the LORD, At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. ⁽⁶⁾ The heavens declare His righteousness, And all the peoples see His glory. ⁽⁷⁾ Let all be put to shame who serve carved images, Who boast of idols. Worship Him, all you gods. ⁽⁸⁾ Zion hears and is glad, And the daughters of Judah rejoice Because of Your judgments, O LORD.

⁽⁹⁾ For You, LORD, are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods. ⁽¹⁰⁾ You who love the LORD, hate evil! He preserves the souls of His saints; He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked. ⁽¹¹⁾ Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart. ⁽¹²⁾ Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.

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 99

⁽¹⁾ The LORD reigns; Let the peoples tremble! He dwells between the cherubim; Let the earth be moved! ⁽²⁾ The LORD is great in Zion, And He is high above all the peoples. ⁽³⁾ Let them praise Your great and awesome name -- He is holy. ⁽⁴⁾ The King's strength also loves justice; You have established equity; You have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.

⁽⁵⁾ Exalt the LORD our God, And worship at His footstool -- He is holy. ⁽⁶⁾ Moses and Aaron were among His priests, And Samuel was among those who called upon His name; They called upon the LORD, and He answered them. ⁽⁷⁾ He spoke to them in the cloudy pillar; They kept His testimonies and the ordinance He gave them. ⁽⁸⁾ You answered them, O LORD our God; You were to them God-Who-Forgives, Though You took vengeance on their deeds.

⁽⁹⁾ Exalt the LORD our God, And worship at His holy hill; For the LORD our God is holy.

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 100

⁽¹⁾ Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! ⁽²⁾ Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. ⁽³⁾ Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. ⁽⁴⁾ Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

⁽⁵⁾ For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

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.

Genesis Chapter 31

⁽¹⁾ Now Jacob heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, 'Jacob has taken away all that was our father's, and from what was our father's he has acquired all this wealth.' ⁽²⁾ And Jacob saw the countenance of Laban, and indeed it was not favorable toward him as before. ⁽³⁾ Then the LORD said to Jacob, 'Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you.' ⁽⁴⁾ So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field, to his flock,

⁽⁵⁾ and said to them, 'I see your father's countenance, that it is not favorable toward me as before; but the God of my father has been with me. ⁽⁶⁾ And you know that with all my might I have served your father. ⁽⁷⁾ Yet your father has deceived me and changed my wages ten times, but God did not allow him to hurt me. ⁽⁸⁾ If he said thus: 'The speckled shall be your wages,' then all the flocks bore speckled. And if he said thus: 'The streaked shall be your wages,' then all the flocks bore streaked.

⁽⁹⁾ So God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me. ⁽¹⁰⁾ And it happened, at the time when the flocks conceived, that I lifted my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the flocks were streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted. ⁽¹¹⁾ Then the Angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, 'Jacob.' And I said, 'Here I am.' ⁽¹²⁾ And He said, 'Lift your eyes now and see, all the rams which leap on the flocks are streaked, speckled, and gray-spotted; for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you.

⁽¹³⁾ I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.' ' ⁽¹⁴⁾ Then Rachel and Leah answered and said to him, 'Is there still any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house? ⁽¹⁵⁾ Are we not considered strangers by him? For he has sold us, and also completely consumed our money. ⁽¹⁶⁾ For all these riches which God has taken from our father are really ours and our children's; now then, whatever God has said to you, do it.'

⁽¹⁷⁾ Then Jacob rose and set his sons and his wives on camels. ⁽¹⁸⁾ And he carried away all his livestock and all his possessions which he had gained, his acquired livestock which he had gained in Padan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel had stolen the household idols that were her father's. ⁽²⁰⁾ And Jacob stole away, unknown to Laban the Syrian, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee.

⁽²¹⁾ So he fled with all that he had. He arose and crossed the river, and headed toward the mountains of Gilead. ⁽²²⁾ And Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled. ⁽²³⁾ Then he took his brethren with him and pursued him for seven days' journey, and he overtook him in the mountains of Gilead. ⁽²⁴⁾ But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, 'Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.'

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

1 John Chapter 2

⁽¹⁾ My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. ⁽²⁾ And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. ⁽³⁾ Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. ⁽⁴⁾ He who says, 'I know Him,' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

⁽⁵⁾ But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. ⁽⁶⁾ He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. ⁽⁷⁾ Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. ⁽⁸⁾ Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.

⁽⁹⁾ He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. ⁽¹⁰⁾ He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. ⁽¹¹⁾ But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 9

⁽¹⁸⁾ But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. ⁽¹⁹⁾ And they asked them, saying, 'Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?' ⁽²⁰⁾ His parents answered them and said, 'We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; ⁽²¹⁾ but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.'

⁽²²⁾ His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. ⁽²³⁾ Therefore his parents said, 'He is of age; ask him.' ⁽²⁴⁾ So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, 'Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.' ⁽²⁵⁾ He answered and said, 'Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.'

⁽²⁶⁾ Then they said to him again, 'What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?' ⁽²⁷⁾ He answered them, 'I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?' ⁽²⁸⁾ Then they reviled him and said, 'You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples. ⁽²⁹⁾ We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.'

⁽³⁰⁾ The man answered and said to them, 'Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! ⁽³¹⁾ Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. ⁽³²⁾ Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. ⁽³³⁾ If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.'

⁽³⁴⁾ They answered and said to him, 'You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?' And they cast him out. ⁽³⁵⁾ Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, 'Do you believe in the Son of God?' ⁽³⁶⁾ He answered and said, 'Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?' ⁽³⁷⁾ And Jesus said to him, 'You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.'

⁽³⁸⁾ Then he said, 'Lord, I believe!' And he worshiped Him. ⁽³⁹⁾ And Jesus said, 'For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.' ⁽⁴⁰⁾ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, 'Are we blind also?' ⁽⁴¹⁾ Jesus said to them, 'If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains.

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:  Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany
O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed; 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