This week, after experimenting with the RCL this summer, we return to the lessons appointed for Evensong in the Church of England. For a form of worship in the home based on today’s lessons in the Revised Common Lectionary, go to https://blogs.elca.org/worship/2753/
Antiphon1
Ant. You are righteous, O Lord, *
and right is your judgment;
deal with this servant of yours according to your mercy.
V. Blessed are those whose way is blameless, *
who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep his decrees! *
With all their hearts they seek him. Psalm 119
God of all glory,
on this first day
you began creation,
bringing light out of darkness.
On this first day
you began your new creation,
raising Jesus Christ out of the darkness of death.
On this Lord’s Day
grant that we,
the people you create by water and the Spirit,
may be joined with all your works
in praising you for your great glory.
Through Jesus Christ,
in union with the Holy Spirit,
we praise you now and forever. Amen. BCW
Music: https://tinyurl.com/ycn4djk5
O Lord, open my lips.
And my mouth will declare your praise.
Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
make haste to help me, O Lord.
Glory be 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.
Praise to you, O Christ, Alleluia!
HYMN: Charles Wesley
Tune: Azmon https://tinyurl.com/y9o8c6ne
Tune: Richmond https://tinyurl.com/y4tmteom
Tune: Lyngham https://tinyurl.com/y22ey7g6
1 O for a thousand tongues, to sing
my dear Redeemer’s praise,
the glories of my God and King,
the triumphs of his grace!
2 Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
that bids our sorrows cease;
’tis music in the sinner’s ears,
’tis life and health and peace.
3 He breaks the power of cancelled sin,
he sets the prisoner free:
his blood can make the foulest clean;
his blood availed for me.
4 He speaks; and, listening to his voice,
new life the dead receive,
the mournful broken hearts rejoice,
the humble poor believe.
5 Hear him, ye deaf; his praise, ye dumb,
your loosened tongues employ;
ye blind, behold your Saviour come;
and leap, ye lame, for joy!
6 My gracious Master and my God,
assist me to proclaim
and spread through all the earth abroad
the honours of thy name.
PSALMS
For psalms in contemporary language, https://tinyurl.com/y9tjh7rk
Psalm 30 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/yce59yvo)
1 I will magnify thee, O Lord, for thou hast set me up *
and not made my foes to triumph over me.
2 O Lord my God, I cried unto thee *
and thou hast healed me.
3 Thou, Lord, hast brought my soul out of hell *
thou hast kept my life from them that go down to the pit.
4 Sing praises unto the Lord, O ye saints of his *
and give thanks unto him for a remembrance of his holiness.
5 For his wrath endureth but the twinkling of an eye,
and in his pleasure is life *
heaviness may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
6 And in my prosperity I said, I shall never be removed *
thou, Lord, of thy goodness hast made my hill so strong.
7 Thou didst turn thy face from me *
and I was troubled.
8 Then cried I unto thee, O Lord *
and gat me to my Lord right humbly.
9 What profit is there in my blood *
when I go down to the pit?
10 Shall the dust give thanks unto thee *
or shall it declare thy truth?
11 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me *
Lord, be thou my helper.
12 Thou hast turned my heaviness into joy *
thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness.
13 Therefore shall every good man sing of thy praise without ceasing *
O my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 31 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/y869qwtz)
1 In thee, O Lord, have I put my trust *
let me never be put to confusion, deliver me in thy righteousness.
2 Bow down thine ear to me *
make haste to deliver me.
3 And be thou my strong rock, and house of defence *
that thou mayest save me.
4 For thou art my strong rock, and my castle *
be thou also my guide, and lead me for thy Name’s sake.
5 Draw me out of the net, that they have laid privily for me *
for thou art my strength.
6 Into thy hands I commend my spirit *
for thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of truth.
7 I have hated them that hold of superstitious vanities *
and my trust hath been in the Lord.
8 I will be glad, and rejoice in thy mercy *
for thou hast considered my trouble,
and hast known my soul in adversities.
9 Thou hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy *
but hast set my feet in a large room.
10 Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am in trouble *
and mine eye is consumed for very heaviness;
yea, my soul and my body.
11 For my life is waxen old with heaviness *
and my years with mourning.
12 My strength faileth me, because of mine iniquity *
and my bones are consumed.
13 I became a reproof among all mine enemies,
but especially among my neighbours *
and they of mine acquaintance were afraid of me;
and they that did see me without conveyed themselves from me.
14 I am clean forgotten, as a dead man out of mind *
I am become like a broken vessel.
15 For I have heard the blasphemy of the multitude *
and fear is on every side, while they conspire together against me,
and take their counsel to take away my life.
16 But my hope hath been in thee, O Lord *
I have said, Thou art my God.
17 My time is in thy hand; deliver me from the hand of mine enemies *
and from them that persecute me.
18 Shew thy servant the light of thy countenance *
and save me for thy mercy’s sake.
19 Let me not be confounded, O Lord, for I have called upon thee *
let the ungodly be put to confusion, and be put to silence in the grave.
20 Let the lying lips be put to silence *
which cruelly, disdainfully, and despitefully, speak against the righteous.
21 O how plentiful is thy goodness,
which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee *
and that thou hast prepared for them that put their trust in thee,
even before the sons of men!
22 Thou shalt hide them privily by thine own presence
from the provoking of all men *
thou shalt keep them secretly in thy tabernacle from the strife of tongues.
23 Thanks be to the Lord *
for he hath shewed me marvellous great kindness in a strong city.
24 And when I made haste, I said *
I am cast out of the sight of thine eyes.
25 Nevertheless, thou heardest the voice of my prayer *
when I cried unto thee.
26 O love the Lord, all ye his saints *
for the Lord preserveth them that are faithful,
and plenteously rewardeth the proud doer.
27 Be strong, and he shall establish your heart *
all ye that put your trust in the Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
PRAYER
Loving God,
glorious in giving and restoring life,
do not hide your face from your people overcome with loneliness and fear.
Turn our weeping into dancing,
our despair into joy,
and raise us up with Christ,
that we may rejoice in your presence forever. Amen. BCW
THE WORD OF GOD
Reading: Ezekiel 12.21 – 13.16
The word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, what is this proverb of yours about the land of Israel, which says, ‘The days are prolonged, and every vision comes to nothing’? Tell them therefore, ‘Thus says the Lord God: I will put an end to this proverb, and they shall use it no more as a proverb in Israel.’ But say to them, The days are near, and the fulfilment of every vision. For there shall no longer be any false vision or flattering divination within the house of Israel. But I the Lord will speak the word that I speak, and it will be fulfilled. It will no longer be delayed; but in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak the word and fulfil it, says the Lord God.
The word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for many years ahead; he prophesies for distant times.’ Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord God: None of my words will be delayed any longer, but the word that I speak will be fulfilled, says the Lord God.
The word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who are prophesying; say to those who prophesy out of their own imagination: ‘Hear the word of the Lord!’ Thus says the Lord God, Alas for the senseless prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! Your prophets have been like jackals among ruins, O Israel. You have not gone up into the breaches, or repaired a wall for the house of Israel, so that it might stand in battle on the day of the Lord. They have prophesied falsehood and lying divination; they say, ‘Says the Lord’, when the Lord has not sent them, and yet they wait for the fulfilment of their word! Have you not seen a false vision or uttered a lying divination, when you have said, ‘Says the Lord’, even though I did not speak?
Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have uttered falsehood and prophesied lies, I am against you, says the Lord God. My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and utter lying divinations; they shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel; and you shall know that I am the Lord God. Because, in truth, because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace’, when there is no peace; and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear whitewash on it. Say to those who smear whitewash on it that it shall fall. There will be a deluge of rain, great hailstones will fall, and a stormy wind will break out. When the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the whitewash you smeared on it?’ Therefore thus says the Lord God: In my wrath I will make a stormy wind break out, and in my anger there shall be a deluge of rain, and hailstones in wrath to destroy it. I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare; when it falls, you shall perish within it; and you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus I will spend my wrath upon the wall, and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash; and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it— the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for it, when there was no peace, says the Lord God.
HYMN: Fanny Crosby
Tune: https://tinyurl.com/y3zn7bqo
1. Here in Thy name we are gathered,
Come and revive us, O Lord;
There shall be showers of blessing,
Thou hast declared in Thy Word.
Refrain
Oh, graciously hear us,
Graciously hear us, we pray:
Pour from Thy windows upon us
Showers of blessing today.
2. Oh! that the showers of blessing,
Now on our souls may descend,
While at the footstool of mercy
Pleading Thy promise we bend! [Refrain]
3. There shall be showers of blessing,
Promise that never can fail;
Thou wilt regard our petition;
Surely our faith will prevail. [Refrain]
4. Showers of blessing, we need them,
Showers of blessing from Thee;
Showers of blessing, oh, grant them,
Thine all the glory shall be. [Refrain]
Reading: Acts 19:1-20
While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul passed through the inland regions and came to Ephesus, where he found some disciples. He said to them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?’ They replied, ‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ Then he said, ‘Into what then were you baptized?’ They answered, ‘Into John’s baptism.’ Paul said, ‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied— altogether there were about twelve of them.
He entered the synagogue and for three months spoke out boldly, and argued persuasively about the kingdom of God. When some stubbornly refused to believe and spoke evil of the Way before the congregation, he left them, taking the disciples with him, and argued daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia, both Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord.
God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that when the handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, their diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.’ Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit said to them in reply, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ Then the man with the evil spirit leapt on them, mastered them all, and so overpowered them that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. When this became known to all residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, everyone was awestruck; and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. Also many of those who became believers confessed and disclosed their practices. A number of those who practised magic collected their books and burned them publicly; when the value of these books was calculated, it was found to come to fifty thousand silver coins. So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
HYMN: Marty Haugen ©
Tune: Gather Us In https://tinyurl.com/y5vxueu2
1 Here in this place new light is streaming,
now is the darkness vanished away,
See in this space our fears and our dreamings,
brought here to you in the light of this day.
Gather us in the lost and forsaken,
Gather us in the blind and the lame;
call to us now, and we shall awaken,
we shall arise at the sound of our name.
2 We are the young our lives are a myst’ry,
we are the old who yearn for your face,
We have been sung throughout all of hist’ry,
called to be light to the whole human race.
Gather us in the rich and the haughty,
Gather us in the proud and the strong;
Give us a heart so meek and so lowly,
give us the courage to enter the song.
3 Here we will take the wine and the water,
here we will take the bread of new birth,
Here you shall call your sons and your daughters,
call us anew to be salt for the earth.
Give us to drink the wine of compassion,
Give us to eat the bread that is you;
Nourish us well, and teach us to fashion
lives that are holy and hearts that are true.
4 Not in the dark of buildings confining,
not in some heaven, light years away,
but here in this place the new light is shining,
Now is the Kingdom, now is the day.
Gather us in and hold us forever,
Gather us in and make us your own;
Gather us in all peoples together,
fire of love in our flesh and our bone.
Reading: Mark 7.24–37
From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ But she answered him, ‘Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’
CANTICLE Revelation 11:17-18; 12:10b-12a
(Chant by John Michael Talbot: https://tinyurl.com/ycrn2d4f)
Ant. The Father has given Christ all power, honor, and kingship,
All people will obey him.
We praise you, the Lord God Almighty,
who is and who was.
You have assumed your great power,
you have begun your reign.
the nations have raged in anger,
but then came your day of wrath
and the moment to judge the dead:
the time to reward your servants the prophets
and the holy ones who revere you,
the great and the small alike.
Now have salvation and power come,
the reign of our god and the authority
of his anointed one,
for the accuser of our brothers is cast out,
who night and day accused them before God.
They defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
love for life did not deter them from death.
So rejoice, you heavens,
and you that dwell therein!
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 PRAYERS BCP
Let us pray for the church and for the world.
Grant, almighty God, that all who confess your name
may be united in your truth, live together in your love,
and reveal your glory in the world.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Guide the people of this land, and of all the nations,
in the ways of justice and peace,
that we may honor one another and serve the common good.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation,
that we may use its resources rightly in the service of others
and to your honor and glory.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours,
and grant that we may serve Christ in them
and love one another as he loves us.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Comfort and heal all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit.
Give them courage and hope in their troubles,
and bring them the joy of your salvation.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Almighty and eternal God, ruler of all things in heaven and earth,
mercifully accept the prayers of your people
and strengthen us to do your will
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
(Traditional chant: https://tinyurl.com/ydzx5jdp)
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.]
God, whose love streams like fresh water
into the deserts of our hearts,
you turn us from greed and partiality
to healing and justice.
Make us companions of those who long for your deliverance,
and give us safe passage at the last into the land of your shalom. Amen. RCLP
Music: https://tinyurl.com/y9efvwm5
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. 2 Cor. 13:14
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BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.
RCLP Revised Common Lectionary Prayers. © 2002 Consultation on Common Texts admin. Augsburg Fortress.
BCP The Book of Common Prayer, The Episcopal Church, 1979.
1 Adam Bartlett, Simple English Propers; audio from https://musicasacra.com/additional-publications/sep-practice-videos/ ©
The three main scripture readings are from the The New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Edition, The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662).
Musical links are usually either to artists’ albums posted on Spotify or to recordings made available at smallchurchmusic.com. Audio stripped from YouTube videos is footnoted accordingly above.
Compilation © 2020 Stephen T. Benner. All links worked at the time they were created, but I cannot accept responsibility for their content or any damage resulting from their use. The linked content is under the control of the respective content creators and is subject to change at any time. Any copyright texts included in this compilation are provided for non-commercial purposes related to study or worship. Please contact the respective copyright holders for permission to use the texts in other contexts.
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