Officiant O
God, make speed to save us.
People O
Lord, make haste to help us.
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.
O gracious light,
pure brightness of the everliving
Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as
we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper
light,
we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy
voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of Life,
and to be glorified
through all the worlds.
O God, why have you utterly cast us off? *
why is
your wrath so hot against the sheep of your pasture?
Remember your congregation that you purchased long ago,
*
the tribe you redeemed to be your inheritance,
and Mount
Zion where you dwell.
Turn your steps toward the endless ruins; *
the enemy
has laid waste everything in your sanctuary.
Your adversaries roared in your holy place; *
they
set up their banners as tokens of victory.
They were like men coming up with axes to a grove of
trees; *
they broke down all your carved work with hatchets and
hammers.
They set fire to your holy place; *
they defiled the
dwelling-place of your Name
and razed it to the ground.
They said to themselves, “Let us destroy them
altogether.” *
They burned down all the meeting-places of
God in the land.
There are no signs for us to see;
there is no prophet
left; *
there is not one among us who knows how long.
How long, O God, will the adversary scoff? *
will the
enemy blaspheme your Name for ever?
Why do you draw back your hand? *
why is your right
hand hidden in your bosom?
Yet God is my King from ancient times, *
victorious
in the midst of the earth.
You divided the sea by your might *
and shattered the
heads of the dragons upon the waters;
You crushed the heads of Leviathan *
and gave him to
the people of the desert for food.
You split open spring and torrent; *
you dried up
ever-flowing rivers.
Yours is the day, yours also the night; *
you
established the moon and the sun.
You fixed all the boundaries of the earth; *
you made
both summer and winter.
Remember, O LORD, how the enemy scoffed, *
how a
foolish people despised your Name.
Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts;
*
never forget the lives of your poor.
Look upon your covenant; *
the dark places of the
earth are haunts of violence.
Let not the oppressed turn away ashamed; *
let the
poor and needy praise your Name.
Arise, O God, maintain your cause; *
remember how
fools revile you all day long.
Forget not the clamor of your adversaries, *
the
unending tumult of those who rise up against you.
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.
A Reading from the Acts of the Apostles.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was an earthquake, so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted in a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” The jailer called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them outside and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. At the same hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his entire family were baptized without delay. He brought them up into the house and set food before them; and he and his entire household rejoiced that he had become a believer in God.
When morning came, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” And the jailer reported the message to Paul, saying, “The magistrates sent word to let you go; therefore come out now and go in peace.” But Paul replied, “They have beaten us in public, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they going to discharge us in secret? Certainly not! Let them come and take us out themselves.” The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens; so they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. After leaving the prison they went to Lydia’s home; and when they had seen and encouraged the brothers and sisters there, they departed.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
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.
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.
Officiant The
Lord be with you.
People And
also with you.
Officiant Let
us pray.
Our Father, who art in
heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will
be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our
daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive
those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into
temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the
kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
That this evening may be
holy, good, and peaceful.
We entreat you, O Lord.
That your holy angels may
lead us in paths of peace and goodwill,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be pardoned
and forgiven for our sins and offenses,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That there may be peace to
your Church and to the whole world,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may depart this
life in your faith and fear, and not be condemned before the great
judgment seat of Christ,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be bound
together by your Holy Spirit in the communion of all your saints,
entrusting one another and all our life to Christ,
We entreat you,
O Lord.
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Lord Jesus, stay with us, for evening is at hand and the day is past; be our companion in the way, kindle our hearts, and awaken hope, that we may know you as you are revealed in Scripture and the breaking of bread. Grant this for the sake of your love. Amen.
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.
Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.
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