Oremus for Monday, December 19, 2022

Antiphon
Chant: https://tinyurl.com/y8zya7wc

O radix Jesse,
qui stas in signum populorum,
super quem continebunt reges os suum,
quem Gentes deprecabuntur:
veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.

O Root of Jesse,
standing as a sign among the peoples;
before you kings will shut their mouths,
to you the nations will make their prayer:
Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

O Root of Jesse,
you reach deep down into the darkness of the earth
and stir the world’s longings for deliverance and hope:
raise up within our own lives
a spirit of courage and strength, of wisdom and insight,
that we may do your work for the coming of your kingdom—
through the merits of the one we know as the beginning of the ages,
even Christ, our Lord. Amen. ^WS2

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: Jeannette M Lindholm ©
Tune: Columcille https://tinyurl.com/2npx2tsw

1 Unexpected and mysterious
is the gentle Word of grace.
Ever loving and sustaining
is the peace of God’s embrace.
If we falter in our courage
and we doubt what we have known,
God is faithful to console us
as a mother tends her own.

2 In a momentary meeting
of eternity and time,
Mary learned that she would carry
both the mortal and divine.
Then she learned of God’s compassion,
of Elizabeth’s great joy,
and she ran to greet the woman
who would recognize her boy.

3 We are called to ponder mystery
and await the coming Christ,
to embody God’s compassion
for each fragile human life.
God is with us in our longing
to bring healing to the earth
while we watch with joy and wonder
for the promised Savior’s birth.

PSALMS

Psalm 98 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ybagfe5m)
1  O sing unto the Lord a new song *
 for he hath done marvellous things.
2  With his own right hand, and with his holy arm *
 hath he gotten himself the victory.
3  The Lord declared his salvation *
 his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.
4  He hath remembered his mercy and truth toward the house of Israel *
 and all the ends of the world have seen the salvation of our God.
5  Shew yourselves joyful unto the Lord, all ye lands *
 sing, rejoice, and give thanks.
6  Praise the Lord upon the harp *
 sing to the harp with a psalm of thanksgiving.
7  With trumpets also, and shawms *
 O shew yourselves joyful before the Lord the King.
8  Let the sea make a noise, and all that therein is *
 the round world, and they that dwell therein.
9  Let the floods clap their hands,
and let the hills be joyful together before the Lord *
 for he is come to judge the earth.
10  With righteousness shall he judge the world *
 and the people with equity.
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 99 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ycxaq7mg)
1  The Lord is King, be the people never so impatient *
 he sitteth between the cherubims, be the earth never so unquiet.
2  The Lord is great in Sion *
 and high above all people.
3  They shall give thanks unto thy Name *
 which is great, wonderful, and holy.
4  The king’s power loveth judgement; thou hast prepared equity *
 thou hast executed judgement and righteousness in Jacob.
5  O magnify the Lord our God *
 and fall down before his footstool, for he is holy.
6  Moses and Aaron among his priests,
and Samuel among such as call upon his Name *
 these called upon the Lord, and he heard them.
7  He spake unto them out of the cloudy pillar *
 for they kept his testimonies, and the law that he gave them.
8  Thou heardest them, O Lord our God *
 thou forgavest them, O God, and punishedst their own inventions.
9  O magnify the Lord our God, and worship him upon his holy hill *
 for the Lord our God is holy.
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 100 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ycklx9gf)
1  O be joyful in the Lord, all ye lands *
 serve the Lord with gladness, and come before his presence with a song.
2  Be ye sure that the Lord he is God *
 it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
3  O go your way into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into his courts with praise *
 be thankful unto him, and speak good of his Name.
4  For the Lord is gracious, his mercy is everlasting *
 and his truth endureth from generation to generation.
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 101 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/y7mv7duf)
1  My song shall be of mercy and judgement *
 unto thee, O Lord, will I sing.
2  O let me have understanding *
 in the way of godliness.
3  When wilt thou come unto me *
 I will walk in my house with a perfect heart.
4  I will take no wicked thing in hand; I hate the sins of unfaithfulness *
 there shall no such cleave unto me.
5  A froward heart shall depart from me *
 I will not know a wicked person.
6  Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour *
 him will I destroy.
7  Whoso hath also a proud look and high stomach *
 I will not suffer him.
8  Mine eyes look upon such as are faithful in the land *
 that they may dwell with me.
9  Whoso leadeth a godly life *
 he shall be my servant.
10  There shall no deceitful person dwell in my house *
 he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.
11  I shall soon destroy all the ungodly that are in the land *
 that I may root out all wicked doers from the city of 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.

Psalm 98 (LSB Tone F: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-98-LSB.mp3)
Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! For he has done marvelous things;
his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.
2 The Lord has made known his salvation;
he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love
and faithfulness to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
4 Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
5 Sing to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody!
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn;
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it,
the world and those who dwell in it!
8 Let the rivers clap their hands;
let the hills sing for joy together before the Lord,
9 For he will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
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.

Psalm 99 (LSB Tone F: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-99-LSB.mp3)
1 The Lord reigns; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2 The Lord is great in Zion,
he is exalted over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name!
Holy. is he!
4 The king in his might loves justice;
you have established equity;
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Exalt the Lord our God, worship at His footstool!
Holy is he!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.
They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
7 In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;
they kept his testimonies and the statute that he gave them.
8 O Lord our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrong-doing.
9 Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain;
for the Lord our God is holy!
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.

Psalm 100 (Plainsong: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-100.mp3)
1 Be joyful in the LORD, all you lands; *
serve the LORD with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
2 Know this: The LORD himself is God; *
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
3 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise; *
give thanks to him and call upon his Name.
4 For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting; *
and his faithfulness endures from age to age.

Psalm 101 (Plainsong: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-101.mp3)
1 I will sing of mercy and justice; *
to you, O LORD, will I sing praises.
2 I will strive to follow a blameless course;
oh, when will you come to me? *
I will walk with sincerity of heart within my house.
3 I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; *
I hate the doers of evil deeds;
they shall not remain with me.
4 A crooked heart shall be far from me; *
I will not know evil.
5 Those who in secret slander their neighbors I will destroy; *
those who have a haughty look and a proud
 heart I cannot abide.
6 My eyes are upon the faithful in the land, that they may
 dwell with me, *
and only those who lead a blameless life shall
 be my servants.
7 Those who act deceitfully shall not dwell in my house, *
and those who tell lies shall not continue in my sight.
8 I will soon destroy all the wicked in the land, *
that I may root out all evildoers from the city of the LORD.

PRAYER

Holy God,
you are exalted over all the nations,
and just in all your ways.
Strengthen us to worship you with our deeds
and to proclaim your greatness with our lips,
for the glory of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ^BCW

THE WORD OF GOD

Reading: Isaiah 11:10-13

On that day, the root of Jesse will stand as a signal to the peoples. The nations will seek him out, and his dwelling will be glorious.

On that day, the Lord will extend his hand a second time to reclaim the survivors of God’s people who are left from Assyria and from Egypt, from Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.

Reading: Titus 2:1-10

But you should talk in a way that is consistent with sound teaching. Tell the older men to be sober, dignified, sensible, and healthy in respect to their faith, love, and patience.

Likewise, tell the older women to be reverent in their behavior, teaching what is good, rather than being gossips or addicted to heavy drinking. That way they can mentor young women to love their husbands and children, and to be sensible, morally pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, so that God’s word won’t be ridiculed. Likewise, encourage the younger men to be sensible in every way. Offer yourself as a role model of good actions. Show integrity, seriousness, and a sound message that is above criticism when you teach, so that any opponent will be ashamed because they won’t find anything bad to say about us.

Tell slaves to submit to their own masters and please them in everything they do. They shouldn’t talk back or steal. Instead, they should show that they are completely reliable in everything so that they might make the teaching about God our savior attractive in every way.

HYMN: Ambrose; trans. Martin Luther; trans. Evangelical Lutheran Worship, 2006 ©
Tune: Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland

1 Savior of the nations, come;
virgin’s son, make here your home.
Marvel now, O heav’n and earth:
God has chosen such a birth.

2 Not by human flesh and blood,
but the mystic Breath of God,
was the Word of God made flesh,
fruit of woman, blossom fresh.

3 Wondrous birth — oh, wondrous child –
from his throne, a virgin mild!
Very God, and Mary’s son,
eager now his race to run!

4 From God’s heart the Savior speeds,
back to God his pathway leads;
out to vanquish death’s command,
back to reign at God’s right hand.

5 Now your manger, shining bright,
hallows night with newborn light.
Night cannot this light subdue;
let our faith shine ever new.

6 Praise we sing to Christ the Lord,
virgin’s son, incarnate Word!
To the holy Trinity
praise we sign eternally!

Reading: Luke 1:26-38

When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee, to a virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary. When the angel came to her, he said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. He will rule over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom.”

Then Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I haven’t had sexual relations with a man?”

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come over you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the one who is to be born will be holy. He will be called God’s Son. Look, even in her old age, your relative Elizabeth has conceived a son. This woman who was labeled ‘unable to conceive’ is now six months pregnant. Nothing is impossible for God.”

Then Mary said, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

CANTICLE: Luke 1:68-79
(Consiglio: https://tinyurl.com/ya8y3kqs)

Ant. Blest be the Lord God of Israel; *
who has come to his people and set them free.

God has raiséd up a Savior strong and proud,
born of his servant David.
And through holy prophets God has promised from of old,
to save us from all our foes, from the hands of all who hate us. Ant.

God promised to show mercy to our ancestors
to remember the covenant.
This was the oath sworn to father Abraham,
to set us free from our enemies’ hands,
free to worship God without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life. Ant.

You, little child, are the prophet of the Lord,
you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
To give the people knowledge of salvation
by forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high breaks upon us,
to shine on us who dwell in the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet on the way of peace. Ant.

THE PRAYERS

O Lord,
you have revealed yourself in manifold ways
throughout human history.
You are surely coming and without delay:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

At your coming all things will rejoice:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

You come to show us our dignity as God’s children:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Look with compassion on the sick and the suffering:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Help us to recognize the signs of the times:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

May all things be judged in the light of your truth:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.

(Plainsong Mode 2: https://tinyurl.com/yctqq8cf)^DL

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today the bread of life;
and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.

God of impossible love,
announcing to us
a new way of being,
an unconventional birth:
give us the faith of Mary
to work with the Spirit of life;
give us her perplexity
an opening to the event;
give us her deep thought
which delves beyond the norm;
through Jesus Christ, long awaited, unforeseen. Amen. ^PIC

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

---

^BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.

^DL © Daniel Lawson; used with permission.

The intercession has been used in Oremus for at least 20 years and I no longer recall the source. I apologize.

^PIC Prayers for An Inclusive Church. Steven Shakespeare © 2008 Canterbury Press.

The main scripture readings are © 2011 Common English Bible.

The traditional-language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern versions of Psalms 100 and 101 are from The Book of Common Prayer (1979) and are chanted by Ryland Angel. The modern versions of Psalms 98 and 99 are from Lutheran Service Book and are from the Next to the Word of God YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkVRYL-MRebncw584Ql2xfg.

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 © 2022 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.