Friday – Year 1 Proper 21

Morning Prayer

Opening Sentence

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.

Invitatory

Venite

Come, let us sing to the Lord; *
   let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving *
   and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.

For the Lord is a great God, *
   and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth, *
   and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, *
   and his hands have molded the dry land.

Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, *
   and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. *
   Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!

Psalms

102

1 Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come before you; *
hide not your face from me in the day of my trouble.

2 Incline your ear to me; *
when I call, make haste to answer me,

3 For my days drift away like smoke, *
and my bones are hot as burning coals.

4 My heart is smitten like grass and withered, *
so that I forget to eat my bread.

5 Because of the voice of my groaning *
I am but skin and bones.

6 I have become like a vulture in the wilderness, *
like an owl among the ruins.

7 I lie awake and groan; *
I am like a sparrow, lonely on a house-top.

8 My enemies revile me all day long, *
and those who scoff at me have taken an oath against me.

9 For I have eaten ashes for bread *
and mingled my drink with weeping.

10 Because of your indignation and wrath *
you have lifted me up and thrown me away.

11 My days pass away like a shadow, *
and I wither like the grass.

12 But you, O Lord, endure for ever, *
and your Name from age to age.

13 You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to have mercy upon her; *
indeed, the appointed time has come.

14 For your servants love her very rubble, *
and are moved to pity even for her dust.

15 The nations shall fear your Name, O Lord, *
and all the kings of the earth your glory.

16 For the Lord will build up Zion, *
and his glory will appear.

17 He will look with favor on the prayer of the homeless; *
he will not despise their plea.

18 Let this be written for a future generation, *
so that a people yet unborn may praise the Lord.

19 For the Lord looked down from his holy place on high; *
from the heavens he beheld the earth;

20 That he might hear the groan of the captive *
and set free those condemned to die;

21 That they may declare in Zion the Name of the Lord, *
and his praise in Jerusalem;

22 When the peoples are gathered together, *
and the kingdoms also, to serve the Lord.

23 He has brought down my strength before my time; *
he has shortened the number of my days;

24 And I said, "O my God,
do not take me away in the midst of my days; *
your years endure throughout all generations.

25 In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, *
and the heavens are the work of your hands;

26 They shall perish, but you will endure;
they all shall wear out like a garment; *
as clothing you will change them,
and they shall be changed;

27 But you are always the same, *
and your years will never end.

28 The children of your servants shall continue, *
and their offspring shall stand fast in your sight."

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

2 Kings 19:1-20

When King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. And he sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. They said to him, ‘Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children have come to birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth. It may be that the Lord your God heard all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’ When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, ‘Say to your master, “Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me. I myself will put a spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumour and return to his own land; I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.” ’

The Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah; for he had heard that the king had left Lachish. When the king* heard concerning King Tirhakah of Ethiopia,* ‘See, he has set out to fight against you’, he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying, ‘Thus shall you speak to King Hezekiah of Judah: Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. See, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them utterly. Shall you be delivered? Have the gods of the nations delivered them, the nations that my predecessors destroyed, Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden who were in Telassar? Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, the king of Hena, or the king of Ivvah?’

Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it; then Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: ‘O Lord the God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, you are God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; you have made heaven and earth. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to mock the living God. Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, and have hurled their gods into the fire, though they were no gods but the work of human hands—wood and stone—and so they were destroyed. So now, O Lord our God, save us, I pray you, from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, O Lord, are God alone.’

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I have heard your prayer to me about King Sennacherib of Assyria.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Canticle 10 The Second Song of Isaiah

Seek the Lord while he wills to be found; *

call upon him when he draws near.

Let the wicked forsake their ways *

and the evil ones their thoughts;

And let them turn to the Lord, and he will have compassion, *

and to our God, for he will richly pardon.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, *

nor your ways my ways, says the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, *

so are my ways higher than your ways,

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

For as rain and snow fall from the heavens *

and return not again, but water the earth,

Bringing forth life and giving growth, *

seed for sowing and bread for eating,

So is my word that goes forth from my mouth; *

it will not return to me empty;

But it will accomplish that which I have purposed, *

and prosper in that for which I sent it.

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

1 Corinthians 9:16-27

If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe betide me if I do not proclaim the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel.

For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.

Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable garland, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Canticle 18 A Song to the Lamb

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, *

for ever and for ever more.

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.

The Apostle's 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 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.

The Lord's Prayer

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.

Suffrages

Show us your mercy, O Lord;

And grant us your salvation.

Clothe your ministers with righteousness;

Let your people sing with joy.

Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;

For only in you can we live in safety.

Lord, keep this nation under your care;

And guide us in the way of justice and truth.

Let your way be known upon earth;

Your saving health among all nations.

Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;

Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.

Create in us clean hearts, O God;

And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

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.

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.

Prayers and Intercessions

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.

Benediction

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