Wednesday –
Year 1 Proper 21
Morning Prayer
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
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.
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.
101
1
I will sing of mercy and justice; *
to you, O Lord, will I sing
praises.
2 I will strive to follow a blameless course;
oh,
when will you come to me? *
I will walk with sincerity of heart
within my house.
3 I will set no worthless thing before my
eyes; *
I hate the doers of evil deeds;
they shall not remain
with me.
4 A crooked heart shall be far from me; *
I will
not know evil.
5 Those who in secret slander their neighbors I
will destroy; *
those
who have a haughty look and a proud heart I cannot abide.
6 My
eyes are upon the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me,
*
and only those who lead a blameless life shall be my
servants.
7 Those who act deceitfully shall not dwell in my
house, *
and those who tell lies shall not continue in my
sight.
8 I will soon destroy all the wicked in the land,
*
that I may root out all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
109
1
Hold not your tongue, O God of my praise; *
for the mouth of the
wicked,
the mouth of the deceitful, is opened against me.
2 They speak to
me with a lying tongue; *
they encompass me with hateful words
and
fight against me without a cause.
3 Despite my love, they
accuse me; *
but as for me, I pray for them.
4 They repay
evil for good, *
and hatred for my love.
(5
Set a wicked man against him, *
and let an accuser stand at his
right hand.
6 When he is judged, let him be found guilty,
*
and let his appeal be in vain.
7 Let his days be few,
*
and let another take his office.
8 Let his children be
fatherless, *
and his wife become a widow.
9 Let his
children be waifs and beggars; *
let them be driven from the ruins
of their homes.
10 Let the creditor seize everything he has;
*
let strangers plunder his gains.
11 Let there be no one
to show him kindness, *
and none to pity his fatherless
children.
12 Let his descendants be destroyed, *
and
his name be blotted out in the next generation.
13 Let the
wickedness of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, *
and his
mother's sin not be blotted out;
14 Let their sin be always
before the Lord; *
but let him root out their names from the
earth;
15
Because he did not remember to show mercy, *
but persecuted the
poor and needy
and sought to kill the brokenhearted.
16 He
loved cursing,
let it come upon him; *
he took no delight in
blessing,
let it depart from him.
17 He put on cursing like
a garment, *
let it soak into his body like water
and into his
bones like oil;
18 Let it be to him like the cloak which
he
wraps around himself, *
and like the belt that he wears
continually.
19 Let this be the recompense from the Lord to my
accusers, *
and to those who speak evil against me.)
20
But you, O Lord my God,
oh, deal with me according to your Name;
*
for your tender mercy's sake, deliver me.
21 For I am
poor and needy, *
and my heart is wounded within me.
22 I
have faded away like a shadow when it lengthens; *
I am shaken off
like a locust.
23 My knees are weak through fasting, *
and
my flesh is wasted and gaunt.
24 I have become a reproach to
them; *
they see and shake their heads.
25 Help me, O Lord
my God; *
save me for your mercy's sake.
26 Let them know
that this is your hand, *
that you, O Lord, have done it.
27
They may curse, but you will bless; *
let those who rise up
against me be put to shame,
and your servant will rejoice.
28
Let my accusers be clothed with disgrace *
and wrap themselves in
their shame as in a cloak.
29 I will give great thanks to the
Lord with my mouth; *
in the midst of the multitude will I praise
him;
30 Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, *
to
save his life from those who would condemn 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 for ever. Amen.
In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of King Hoshea son of Elah of Israel, King Shalmaneser of Assyria came up against Samaria, besieged it, and at the end of three years took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of King Hoshea of Israel, Samaria was taken. The king of Assyria carried the Israelites away to Assyria, settled them in Halah, on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, because they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God but transgressed his covenant—all that Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded; they neither listened nor obeyed.
In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, King Sennacherib of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. King Hezekiah of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, ‘I have done wrong; withdraw from me; whatever you impose on me I will bear.’ The king of Assyria demanded of King Hezekiah of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house. At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord, and from the doorposts that King Hezekiah of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria. The king of Assyria sent the Tartan, the Rabsaris, and the Rabshakeh with a great army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they arrived, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is on the highway to the Fuller’s Field. When they called for the king, there came out to them Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebnah the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the recorder.
The Rabshakeh said to them, ‘Say to Hezekiah: Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: On what do you base this confidence of yours? Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? On whom do you now rely, that you have rebelled against me? See, you are relying now on Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of anyone who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who rely on him. But if you say to me, “We rely on the Lord our God”, is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and to Jerusalem, “You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem”? Come now, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders on them. How then can you repulse a single captain among the least of my master’s servants, when you rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Moreover, is it without the Lord that I have come up against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.’
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Canticle 11 The Third Song of Isaiah
Arise, shine, for your light has come, *
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land; *
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise, *
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light, *
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open; *
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord, *
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land, *
ruin or destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation, *
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day; *
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.
The Lord will be your everlasting light, *
and
your God will be your glory.
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.
Reading
Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that ‘all of us possess knowledge.’ Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; but anyone who loves God is known by him.
Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that ‘no idol in the world really exists’, and that ‘there is no God but one.’ Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as in fact there are many gods and many lords— yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
It is not everyone, however, who has this knowledge. Since some have become so accustomed to idols until now, they still think of the food they eat as food offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. ‘Food will not bring us close to God.’* We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling-block to the weak. For if others see you, who possess knowledge, eating in the temple of an idol, might they not, since their conscience is weak, be encouraged to the point of eating food sacrificed to idols? So by your knowledge those weak believers for whom Christ died are destroyed.* But when you thus sin against members of your family,* and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food is a cause of their falling,* I will never eat meat, so that I may not cause one of them* to fall.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Canticle 16
Blessed be the
Lord, the God of Israel;*
he has come to his people and set them
free.
He has raised up
for us a mighty savior,*
born of the house of his servant
David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old,
that he would
save us from our enemies,*
from the hands of all who hate us.
he promised to
show mercy to our fathers*
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath
he swore to our father Abraham,*
to set us free from the hands of
our enemies,
Free to worship
him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days
of our life.
You, my child,
shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go
before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his
people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender
compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To
shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,*
and
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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 21
O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
A Collect for Peace
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.
For Mission
Almighty
and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole
body of your
faithful people is governed and sanctified:
Receive our
supplications and prayers which we offer before
you for all
members of your holy Church, that in their
vocation and ministry
they may truly and devoutly serve you;
through our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. 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.
Glory to God
whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or
imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church,
and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20,21