Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night: to you be praise and glory forever. As darkness falls, you renew your promise to reveal among us the light of your presence. By the light of Christ, your living Word, dispel the darkness of our hearts that we may walk as children of light and sing your praise throughout the world.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful, let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As our evening prayer rises before you, O God, so may your mercy come down upon us to cleanse our hearts and set us free to sing your praise now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
Abide with Me
Confession of Sin
Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
“The first of all the commandments is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Amen. Lord, have mercy.
After a period of reflection
Come, let us return to the Lord and say:
Lord our God, in our sin, we have avoided your call. Our faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew, it goes away. Have mercy on us; deliver us from judgment; bind up our wounds and revive us; in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
cf Hosea 6
May Almighty God, who sent his Son into the world to save sinners, bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.
Psalm 9
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
I will give thanks to You, O LORD, with my whole heart;
I will declare all Your marvelous works.
I will be glad and rejoice in You;
I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.
When my enemies are turned back,
they will stumble and perish at Your presence.
For You have maintained my right and my cause;
You sat on the throne judging what is right.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
You have rebuked the nations,
You have destroyed the wicked,
You have wiped out their name forever and ever.
O enemy, destructions are finished forever!
You have destroyed cities;
even the memory of them has perished.
But the LORD remains forever;
He has established His throne for judgment.
He will judge the world in righteousness;
He will give judgment to the peoples in uprightness.
The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed,
a refuge in times of trouble.
Those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
for You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Sing praises to the LORD who dwells in Zion;
declare His deeds among the people.
He who avenges deaths remembers them;
He does not forget the cry of the humble.
Be gracious to me, O LORD; consider my trouble from those who hate me,
O You who lifts me up from the gates of death,
that I may recount all Your praise
in the gates of the daughter of Zion,
that I may rejoice in Your salvation.
The nations have sunk down in the pit that they made;
their own foot is caught in the net which they hid.
The LORD is known by the judgment that He executes;
the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
The wicked will depart to Sheol,
all the nations that forget God.
For the needy will not always be forgotten,
nor will the hope of the poor perish forever.
Arise, O LORD, may mortals not prevail;
let the nations be judged in Your sight.
Put them in fear, O LORD,
that the nations themselves may know that they are mortals.
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.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Psalm prayer
Remember, Lord, all who cry to you from death’s dark gates; do not forget those whom the world forgets, but raise your faithful ones to Zion’s gate, with your all-conquering Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 10
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Why do You stand far off, O LORD?
Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble?
In arrogance the wicked persecutes the poor;
let them be caught in the devices they have planned.
For the wicked boasts of his soul’s desire,
and blesses the greedy and despises the LORD.
The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek God;
God is not in all his thoughts.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
His ways are always prosperous;
Your judgments are high and distant from him;
as for all his enemies, he scoffs at them.
He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
for generations I shall not meet adversity.”
His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under his tongue is mischief and iniquity.
He sits in the lurking places of the villages;
in the secret places he murders the innocent;
his eyes lurk against the unfortunate.
He lies in wait secretly as a lion in his den;
he lies in wait to catch the poor;
he catches the poor, drawing them into his net.
He crouches; he lies low,
so that the unfortunate falls by his strength.
He says in his heart, “God has forgotten;
He hides His face; He will never see it.”
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Arise, O LORD! O God, lift up Your hand!
Do not forget the humble.
Why do the wicked despise God?
He says in his heart,
“You will not require an account.”
You have seen it, for You observe trouble and grief,
to repay it with Your hand.
The helpless commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the orphan.
Break the arm of the wicked and the evil man;
seek out his wickedness
until You find none.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
The LORD is King forever and ever;
the nations perished from His land.
The desire of the humble You have heard, O LORD;
You make their heart attentive; You bend Your ear
to judge the orphan and the oppressed;
man on earth no longer trembles.
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.
𝙍: You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Psalm prayer
When wickedness triumphs, and the poor are betrayed, come to your kingdom, strong and holy God, destroy the masks of evil and reign in our broken hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Ecclesiastes 2
And I said in my heart, “Come, and I will test you with selfish pleasures; enjoy your desires.” And notice that this too is vanity. And I said of frivolous fun, “They are only senseless ideas,” and regarding selfish pleasure, “What purpose is this?” I investigated how to cheer up my body with wine, while my heart was still guiding me with wisdom, in order to grasp folly, until I might experience what is good for people to do under heaven during the number of days that they might have life.
I accomplished great works. I built houses for myself and planted vineyards for myself. I made myself royal gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. I made myself pools of water to irrigate the forests of growing trees. I even bought male and female slaves, and some were born in my house. I also had a great number of livestock, cattle, and sheep, more than there had been before in Jerusalem. I also gathered for myself silver and gold and precious possessions of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and the sensual delights of any human being, even a harem of many concubines. I became great and surpassed anyone who had been in Jerusalem before me. Also my wisdom remained with me.
Everything my eyes wanted, I did not refuse them.
I did not withhold my heart from any selfish pleasure,
for my heart was glad of all my efforts;
and this was my reward for all my efforts.
Then I turned to all the work that my hands had done,
and all the labor in which I had toiled doing it;
and again, all of it was vanity and chasing the wind,
and there was no benefit under the sun.
Then I turned to observe wisdom,
the folly of ideas, and foolish behavior.
For what else can a person do who comes after the king?
Only what has already been done.
Then I saw that there is more benefit in wisdom than in foolishness,
more benefit in light than in darkness.
A wise man has eyes in his head,
but the fool continues in darkness.
Moreover, I experienced
that each one experiences the same event—death.
Then I said in my heart,
“The same event that befalls the fool will also befall me.
So to what advantage is my wisdom?”
Then I said to myself,
“This also is vanity.”
For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise or the fool,
seeing that in the coming days everyone will have been forgotten.
How the wise dies just like the fool!
So I began to hate life, because the labor that was done under the sun was contemptible to me, for all of this is vanity and a chasing after wind. I despised all the toil in which I labored under the sun, which I will give up to the man who comes after me. And who knows if this man will be wise or foolish? Yet he will gain power over all for which I have toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. So I turned to give my heart up to despair concerning all the toil of my labors under the sun. For there is a person who labors with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; yet to a person who did not labor for this, he leaves it as his inheritance. This also is vanity and a great distress. What becomes a man for all his labor and striving in his heart with which he toils under the sun? All his days are sorrowful, and his work is a vexation. Even at night his heart finds no rest. This also is vanity.
There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink, and make his life see the good in his labor. This I have seen is from the hand of God. For who can even eat or have enjoyment more than I? To the person who is pleasing before Him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the one who sins, He gives the task to gather and collect, to give to the other person who is pleasing before God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
John 17:6-19
“I have revealed Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Now they know that all things You have given Me are from You. For I have given them the words which You gave Me. They have received them and certainly know that I came from You, and they have believed that You sent Me. I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those whom You have given Me. For they are Yours. All that are Mine are Yours, and all that are Yours are Mine. And I am glorified in them. I am to be no longer in the world, though these are in the world, for I am coming to You. Holy Father, through Your name keep those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are one. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. I have kept those whom You have given Me. And none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
“But now I am coming to You, and I say these things in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Your word. And the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, so I sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.
Silence may be kept.
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Luke 1:46-55
My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For He has regarded
the low estate of His servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.
His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has pulled down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy,
as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.
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.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
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.
Thanksgiving and intercession
Thanksgiving may be made for the day.
Intercessions are offered
for peace
for individuals and their needs
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The media and the arts
Farming and fishing
Commerce and industry
Those whose work is unfulfilling, stressful, or fraught with danger
All who are unemployed
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: help us so to hear them, to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and for ever hold fast the hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Savior taught us, so we 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,
forever. Amen.
Conclusion
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.