Sext (Midday Prayer)
INTRODUCTION
O God, come to our aid.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
Hymn
Lord God and Maker of all things,
Creation is upheld by you.
While all must change and know decay,
You are unchanging, always new.
You are man’s solace and his shield,
His Rock secure on which to build.
You are the spirit’s tranquil home,
In you alone is hope fulfilled.
To God the Father and the Son
And Holy Spirit render praise:
Blest Trinity, from age to age
The strength of all our living days.
Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal
The psalms of the day are shown here. If you are reciting more than one daytime hour (Terce, Sext, None) today, use the psalms of the day at one hour and the complementary psalms at the others.
SPECIAL FOR TODAY: If you are celebrating Terce today, you must use the psalms of the day at Terce, and use the complementary psalms now.
PSALMS OF THE DAY
Psalm 118(119): 73-80
The angel Gabriel said to Mary, ‘Rejoice, most highly favoured one! The Lord is with you. Of all women you are the most blessed.’
Your hands, Lord, made and shaped me:
give me understanding and I will learn your commands.
Those who fear you will see me and rejoice in you
because I have put all my trust in your word.
I know, O Lord, that your decrees are just,
and that you were right to lay me low.
Give me your loving kindness and console me,
as you have promised to your servant.
Pour out your mercies on me, and I shall live,
because your law is my delight.
Bring confusion upon the proud,
for they attack me with lies;
but I shall devote myself to your commandments.
May those who fear you turn towards me,
those who know your precepts.
In the light of your judgements may my heart shine pure:
let me not be ashamed.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Psalm 58 (59)
A prayer against attackers
Tear me, God, from the hands of my enemies.
Protect me from those who rise up against me.
Rescue me from those who do evil,
save me from the men of blood.
They lie in wait for my life,
they come down on me in force.
But no crime, no sin is in me, O Lord –
they attack me when I have done nothing.
Rise up, come out to me and see!
O my strength, I will await you,
for you, God, are my refuge.
The loving kindness of my God will come to help me:
thanks to God I will look down on my enemies.
I, in turn, will sing of your power
and your loving kindness every morning,
because you are my stronghold,
my refuge in times of trouble.
My strength, I will sing to you,
because you, God, are my stronghold:
my God of loving kindness.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Psalm 59 (60)
A prayer after disaster
O God, you have pushed us away and destroyed us.
You have been angry – turn back to us!
You have struck the earth and broken it:
now heal its tottering remnants.
You have given your people hardship,
made them dizzy with the wine you made them drink.
You have given those who fear you a signal
to flee from the enemy’s bow.
Put forth your strength for those you love:
free them, make them safe – hear us!
God has spoken from his holy place:
“I shall triumph, dividing Shechem,
measuring off the vale of Succoth.
Gilead is mine, mine is Manasseh;
Ephraim my helmet, Judah my sceptre.
But Moab shall be my wash-basin,
on Edom I will place my sandal;
I will cry in triumph over the Philistine.”
Who shall lead me to the fortified city?
Who shall lead me to Edom?
Surely you, God – although you rejected us.
Will you not come out, O God, with our armies?
Give us help in our troubles,
for vain is the help of man.
With God we shall triumph –
he will trample our enemies.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
The angel Gabriel said to Mary, ‘Rejoice, most highly favoured one! The Lord is with you. Of all women you are the most blessed.’
OR:
At the daytime hours (Terce, Sext, None) when you don’t choose to use the psalms of the day, use the complementary psalms instead.
COMPLEMENTARY PSALMS
Psalm 122 (123)
The Lord guards his people
The angel Gabriel said to Mary, ‘Rejoice, most highly favoured one! The Lord is with you. Of all women you are the most blessed.’
To you I lift up my eyes,
to you who dwell in the heavens.
Like the eyes of a servant watching his master,
like the eyes of a maid on her mistress’s hands,
so we keep our eyes on the Lord our God,
as we wait for his kindness.
Take pity on us, Lord, take pity:
we have had our fill of contempt.
Our souls have had their fill
of the laughter of the rich,
of the contempt of the proud.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Psalm 123 (124)
Our help is in the name of the Lord
If the Lord had not been with us
(so let Israel sing),
If the Lord had not been with us
when men rose up against us,
they might have skinned us alive,
such was their anger.
The waters could have drowned us,
the torrent poured over us,
the foaming waters poured over us.
Blessed be the Lord, who saved us
from being torn to pieces by their teeth.
We have escaped, like a bird
from the snare of the fowler.
The snare was broken,
and we escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Psalm 124 (125)
The Lord guards his people
Those who trust in the Lord are like the mountain of Zion:
it cannot be shaken, it will stand firm for ever.
Jerusalem – the mountains stand guard over it,
and the Lord stands guard over his people,
both now and for ever.
The sceptre of the wicked shall not rest
upon the inheritance of the just;
lest the just themselves stretch out their hands
and turn to wickedness.
Be good, O Lord, to the good
and the upright of heart.
As for those who turn away to crooked paths,
the Lord shall treat them like the doers of evil.
Peace be on Israel!
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
The angel Gabriel said to Mary, ‘Rejoice, most highly favoured one! The Lord is with you. Of all women you are the most blessed.’
CONCLUSION
Short Reading
Jeremiah 30:18
©
The Lord says this: Now I will restore the tents of Jacob, and take pity on his dwellings.
℣. Remember us, Lord, for the love you bear your people.
℟. Come to us as a saviour.
Let us pray.
Lord, keep us ever alert and watchful
as we await the coming of your Son,
so that, faithful to his teaching,
we may hasten to meet our Saviour with lamps alight.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Let us praise the Lord.
– Thanks be to God.
