Saturday Year 1
Proper 15
Morning Prayer
The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. John 4:23
Versicle and Response
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 for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
Jubilate
Be joyful in the
Lord, all you lands; *
serve the Lord with
gladness
and come before his presence with a
song.
Know this: The
Lord himself is God; *
he himself has made us,
and we are his;
we are his people and the
sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates
with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise; *
give thanks to him and call upon his Name.
For the Lord is
good;
his mercy is everlasting; *
and his
faithfulness endures from age to age.
137
1 By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept, *
when we
remembered you, O Zion.
2 As for our harps, we hung them up
*
on the trees in the midst of that land.
3 For those who
led us away captive asked us for a song,
and our oppressors called
for mirth: *
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion."
4
How shall we sing the Lord's song *
upon an alien soil?
5
If I forget you, O Jerusalem, *
let my right hand forget its
skill.
6
Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember
you, *
if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy.
(7
Remember the day of Jerusalem, O Lord,
against the people of Edom,
*
who said, "Down with it! down with it!
even to the
ground!"
8 O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
*
happy the one who pays you back
for what you have done to
us!
9 Happy shall he be who takes your little ones, *
and
dashes them against the rock!)
144
1
Blessed be the Lord my rock! *
who trains my hands to fight and my
fingers to battle;
2 My help and my fortress, my stronghold
and my deliverer, *
my shield in whom I trust,
who subdues the
peoples under me.
3 O Lord, what are we that you should care
for us? *
mere mortals that you should think of us?
4 We
are like a puff of wind; *
our days are like a passing shadow.
5
Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; *
touch the mountains,
and they shall smoke.
6 Hurl the lightning and scatter them;
*
shoot out your arrows and rout them.
7 Stretch out your
hand from on high; *
rescue me and deliver me from the great
waters,
from the hand of foreign peoples,
8 Whose mouths
speak deceitfully *
and whose right hand is raised in
falsehood.
9
O God, I will sing to you a new song; *
I will play to you on a
ten-stringed lyre.
10 You give victory to kings *
and have
rescued David your servant.
11
Rescue me from the hurtful sword *
and deliver me from the hand of
foreign peoples,
12 Whose mouths
speak deceitfully *
and whose right hand is raised in falsehood.
13 May our sons
be like plants well nurtured from their youth, *
and our daughters
like sculptured corners of a palace.
14 May our barns be
filled to overflowing with all manner of crops; *
may the flocks
in our pastures increase by thousands and tens of thousands;
may
our cattle be fat and sleek.
15 May there be no breaching of
the walls, no going into exile, *
no wailing in the public
squares.
16 Happy are the people of whom this is so! *
happy
are the people whose God is the Lord!
Glory to the
Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
as it was in the
beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Now these are the
last words of David:
The oracle of David, son of Jesse,
the
oracle of the man whom God exalted,*
the
anointed of the God of Jacob,
the favourite of
the Strong One of Israel:
The spirit of the Lord speaks through me,
his
word is upon my tongue.
The God of Israel has spoken,
the
Rock of Israel has said to me:
One who rules over people
justly,
ruling in the fear of God,
is like
the light of morning,
like the sun rising on a
cloudless morning,
gleaming from the rain on the
grassy land.
Is not my house like this with God?
For
he has made with me an everlasting covenant,
ordered
in all things and secure.
Will he not cause to prosper
all
my help and my desire?
But the godless are*
all like thorns that are thrown away;
for they
cannot be picked up with the hand;
to touch them one uses an iron
bar
or the shaft of a spear.
And
they are entirely consumed in fire on the spot.*
Towards the beginning of harvest three of the thirty* chiefs went down to join David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim. David was then in the stronghold; and the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. David said longingly, ‘O that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!’ Then the three warriors broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew water from the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it; he poured it out to the Lord, for he said, ‘The Lord forbid that I should do this. Can I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?’ Therefore he would not drink it. The three warriors did these things.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Canticle 12 A Song of Creation
Invocation
Glorify the Lord,
all you works of the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for
ever.
In the firmament
of his power, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him
for ever.
I The Cosmic Order
Glorify the Lord,
you angels and all powers of the Lord, *
O heavens and all waters
above the heavens.
Sun and moon and
stars of the sky, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt
him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
every shower of rain and fall of dew, *
all winds and fire and
heat.
Winter and
Summer, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for
ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O chill and cold, *
drops of dew and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold,
ice and sleet, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him
for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O nights and days, *
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and
thunderbolts, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him
for ever.
II The Earth and its Creatures
Let the earth
glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O mountains and hills,
and all that grows upon the earth, *
praise
him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O springs of water, seas, and streams, *
O whales and all that
move in the waters.
All birds of the
air, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O beasts of the wild, *
and all you flocks and herds.
O men and women
everywhere, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him
for ever.
III The People of God
Let the people of
God glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O priests and servants of the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt
him for ever.
Glorify the Lord,
O spirits and souls of the righteous, *
praise him and highly
exalt him for ever.
You that are holy
and humble of heart, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly
exalt him for ever.
Doxology
Let us glorify
the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
praise him and highly
exalt him for ever.
In the firmament
of his power, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him
for ever.
After several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to welcome Festus. Since they were staying there for several days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, ‘There is a man here who was left in prison by Felix. When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me about him and asked for a sentence against him. I told them that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone before the accused had met the accusers face to face and had been given an opportunity to make a defence against the charge. So when they met here, I lost no time, but on the next day took my seat on the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. When the accusers stood up, they did not charge him with any of the crimes* that I was expecting. Instead they had certain points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. Since I was at a loss how to investigate these questions, I asked whether he wished to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges.* But when Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of his Imperial Majesty, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to the emperor.’ Agrippa said to Festus, ‘I would like to hear the man myself.’ ‘Tomorrow’, he said, ‘you will hear him.’
So on the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then Festus gave the order and Paul was brought in. And Festus said, ‘King Agrippa and all here present with us, you see this man about whom the whole Jewish community petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. But I found that he had done nothing deserving death; and when he appealed to his Imperial Majesty, I decided to send him. But I have nothing definite to write to our sovereign about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write— for it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner without indicating the charges against him.’
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
O ruler of the
universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done,
*
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of
righteousness and truth, *
O King of all the
ages
Who can fail to do you homage, Lord
and sing the praises
of your Name
for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will
draw near and fall down before you
because your just and holy
works have been revealed.
Glory
to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
as it was in
the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
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
power of 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 Lord be with
you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.
Our Father in
heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will
be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our
daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin
against us.
Save us from the
time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom,
the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
Govern and uphold them, now and always.
Day by day we bless you;
We praise your name for ever.
Lord, keep us from all sin today;
Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
Lord, show us your love and mercy;
For we put our trust in you.
In you, Lord, is our hope;
And we shall never hope in vain.
Collect of the Day: Pentecost, proper 15
Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of this redeeming work, and to follow daily in the blessed steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
A Collect for Saturdays
Almighty God, who after the creation of the world rested from all your works and sanctified a day of rest for all your creatures: Grant that we, putting away all earthly anxieties, may be duly prepared for the service of your sanctuary, and that our rest here upon earth may be a preparation for the eternal rest promised to your people in heaven; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Mission
O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship you, all nations obey you, all tongues confess and bless you, and men and women everywhere love you and serve you in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
General Thanksgiving
Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the
Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
2 Corinthians 13:14