Vespers (Evening 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
On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry
Announces that the Lord is nigh;
Come then and hearken, for he brings
Glad tidings from the King of kings.
Then cleansed be every Christian breast,
And furnished for so great a guest!
Yea, let us each his heart prepare
For Christ to come and enter there.
For thou art our salvation, Lord,
Our refuge and our great reward;
Without thy grace our souls must fade,
And wither like a flower decayed.
Stretch forth thine hand, to heal our sore,
And make us rise to fall no more;
Once more upon thy people shine,
And fill the world with love divine.
All praise, eternal Son, to thee,
Whose Advent sets thy people free,
Whom, with the Father, we adore,
And Holy Ghost, for evermore.
Psalm 140 (141)
Prayer in time of danger
Proclaim it, say to the peoples: Behold, God will come and save us.
O Lord, I call on you,
hurry to my help:
listen to my voice when I call.
When I make my prayer, let it rise like incense before you;
when I raise my hands, let it be like the evening sacrifice.
Set a guard on my mouth, Lord,
a watch upon my lips.
Do not let my heart turn to evil thoughts,
to the planning of wicked deeds,
to alliance with wrongdoers.
Let me not share in their delights.
Let the just man strike and rebuke me out of kindness;
but sinners shall never anoint me with oil,
or I would be an ally in their plans.
When they fall into the hands of harsh judges,
they will see how kind my words were.
Like fragments of spoil after digging,
their bones will lie scattered round the mouth of the underworld.
To you, Lord, to you my eyes are turned.
I take refuge in you –
preserve my life.
Protect me from the trap they have laid for me,
save me from the snares of the wicked.
Let them be caught in their own nets, all of them,
while I pass by in safety.
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.
Proclaim it, say to the peoples: Behold, God will come and save us.
Psalm 141 (142)
You are my refuge
Behold, the Lord will come, and all his holy ones with him. On that day a great light will appear. Alleluia.
My voice cries out to the Lord;
my voice cries out its entreaty.
I pour out lamentation in his sight,
I proclaim my troubles before him.
When my spirit is failing within me,
still, Lord, you know my paths.
On the road I was travelling,
they set up a trap for me.
I looked about me and saw
there was no-one beside me to help.
I have nowhere to flee;
and no-one will miss me.
I have cried to you, Lord,
I have said: “you are my refuge, my share in the land of the living.
Listen to my call for help, for I am crushed down.”
“Lead my spirit from prison, so that I may praise your name.
The upright will gather around me, because you have restored me.”
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.
Behold, the Lord will come, and all his holy ones with him. On that day a great light will appear. Alleluia.
Canticle
Philippians 2
Christ, God's servant
The Lord will come with great might and all flesh will see him.
Jesus Christ, although he shared God’s nature,
did not try to cling to his equality with God;
but emptied himself, took on the form of a slave,
and became like a man:
not in appearance only,
for he humbled himself by accepting death,
even death on a cross.
For this, God has raised him high,
and given him the name that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bend,
in heaven, on earth, and under the earth,
and every tongue will proclaim
“Jesus Christ is Lord,”
to the glory of God the Father.
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 Lord will come with great might and all flesh will see him.
Short Reading
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
©
May the God of peace make you perfect and holy; and may you all be kept safe and blameless, spirit, soul and body, for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has called you and he will not fail you.
Short Responsory
Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
And grant us your salvation.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
‘So stay awake,’ says Jesus, ‘because you do not know when your master is coming.’ (Year A)
Or: See, the name of the Lord comes from afar. His splendour fills the whole world.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation.
For he has shown me such favour –
me, his lowly handmaiden.
Now all generations will call me blessed,
because the mighty one has done great things for me.
His name is holy,
his mercy lasts for generation after generation
for those who revere him.
He has put forth his strength:
he has scattered the proud and conceited,
torn princes from their thrones;
but lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel,
he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.
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.
‘So stay awake,’ says Jesus, ‘because you do not know when your master is coming.’ (Year A)
Or: See, the name of the Lord comes from afar. His splendour fills the whole world.
Prayers and intercessions
The Son of God is coming with great power: all mankind shall see his face and be reborn.
– Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay!
You will bring us wisdom, fresh understanding and new vision.
– Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay!
You will bring us good news, and power which will transform our lives.
– Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay!
You will bring us truth, showing us the way to our Father.
– Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay!
Born of a woman, you will open in our flesh the way to eternal life and joy.
– Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay!
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.
Grant, almighty Father,
that when Christ comes again we may go out to meet him
bearing the harvest of good works achieved by your grace.
We pray that he will receive us into the company of the saints
and call us into the kingdom of heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
