Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/292eca36
Your merciful love, O God,
we have received in the midst of your temple.
Your praise, O God, like your name,
reaches the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with saving justice. Psalm 48
Source of everlasting light,
send forth your truth into our hearts
and make your face shine on us,
that in giving thanks at your altar
we may come to your eternal dwelling on high;
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. BCW2018
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: Bernard of Clairvaux; trans. Ray Palmer
Tune: Maryton https://tinyurl.com/2rdcjyks
1 Jesus, Thou joy of loving hearts,
Thou fount of life, Thou light of men,
from the best bliss that earth imparts,
we turn unfilled to Thee again.
2 Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood;
Thou savest those that on Thee call;
to them that seek Thee, Thou art good,
to them that find Thee all in all.
3 We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread,
and long to feast upon Thee still;
we drink of Thee, the Fountain-head,
and thirst our souls from Thee to fill.
4 Our restless spirits yearn for Thee,
where’er our changeful lot is cast;
glad when Thy gracious smile we see,
blest when our faith can hold Thee fast.
5 O Jesus, ever with us stay,
make all our moments calm and bright;
chase the dark night of sin away;
shed o’er the world Thy holy light.
PSALMS
Psalm 41 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/urktsqu)
1 Blessed is he that considereth the poor and needy *
the Lord shall deliver him in the time of trouble.
2 The Lord preserve him, and keep him alive,
that he may be blessed upon earth *
and deliver not thou him into the will of his enemies.
3 The Lord comfort him, when he lieth sick upon his bed *
make thou all his bed in his sickness.
4 I said, Lord, be merciful unto me *
heal my soul, for I have sinned against thee.
5 Mine enemies speak evil of me *
When shall he die, and his name perish?
6 And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity *
and his heart conceiveth falsehood within himself,
and when he cometh forth he telleth it.
7 All mine enemies whisper together against me *
even against me do they imagine this evil.
8 Let the sentence of guiltiness proceed against him *
and now that he lieth, let him rise up no more.
9 Yea, even mine own familiar friend, whom I trusted *
who did also eat of my bread, hath laid great wait for me.
10 But be thou merciful unto me, O Lord *
raise thou me up again, and I shall reward them.
11 By this I know thou favourest me *
that mine enemy doth not triumph against me.
12 And when I am in my health, thou upholdest me *
and shalt set me before thy face for ever.
13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel *
world without end. Amen.
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.
Psalms 42 and 43 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/wxrfhr8)
sung as the one psalm they originally were
1 Like as the hart desireth the water-brooks *
so longeth my soul after thee, O God.
2 My soul is athirst for God, yea, even for the living God *
when shall I come to appear before the presence of God?
3 My tears have been my meat day and night *
while they daily say unto me, Where is now thy God?
4 Now when I think thereupon, I pour out my heart by myself *
for I went with the multitude,
and brought them forth into the house of God;
5 In the voice of praise and thanksgiving *
among such as keep holy-day.
6 Why art thou so full of heaviness, O my soul *
and why art thou so disquieted within me?
7 Put thy trust in God *
for I will yet give him thanks for the help of his countenance.
8 My God, my soul is vexed within me *
therefore will I remember thee concerning the land of Jordan,
and the little hill of Hermon.
9 One deep calleth another, because of the noise of the water-pipes *
all thy waves and storms are gone over me.
10 The Lord hath granted his loving-kindness in the day-time *
and in the night-season did I sing of him,
and made my prayer unto the God of my life.
11 I will say unto the God of my strength, Why hast thou forgotten me *
why go I thus heavily, while the enemy oppresseth me?
12 My bones are smitten asunder as with a sword *
while mine enemies that trouble me cast me in the teeth;
13 Namely, while they say daily unto me *
Where is now thy God?
14 Why art thou so vexed, O my soul *
and why art thou so disquieted within me?
15 O put thy trust in God *
for I will yet thank him,
which is the help of my countenance, and my God.
1 Give sentence with me, O God,
and defend my cause against the ungodly people *
O deliver me from the deceitful and wicked man.
2 For thou art the God of my strength, why hast thou put me from thee *
and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresseth me?
3 O send out thy light and thy truth, that they may lead me *
and bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy dwelling.
4 And that I may go unto the altar of God,
even unto the God of my joy and gladness *
and upon the harp will I give thanks unto thee, O God, my God.
5 Why art thou so heavy, O my soul *
and why art thou so disquieted within me?
6 O put thy trust in God *
for I will yet give him thanks,
which is the help of my countenance, and my God.
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 41 (Plainsong: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-41.mp3)
1 Happy are they who consider the poor and needy! *
the LORD will deliver them in the time of trouble.
2 The LORD preserves them and keeps them alive,
so that they may be happy in the land; *
he does not hand them over to the will of their enemies.
3 The LORD sustains them on their sickbed *
and ministers to them in their illness.
4 I said, “LORD, be merciful to me; *
heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies are saying wicked things about me: *
When will he die, and his name perish?”
6 Even if they come to see me, they speak empty words; *
their heart collects false rumors;
they go outside and spread them.
7 All my enemies whisper together about me *
and devise evil against me.
8 “A deadly thing,” they say, “has fastened on him; *
he has taken to his bed and will never get up again.”
9 Even my best friend, whom I trusted,
who broke bread with me, *
has lifted up his heel and turned against me.
10 But you, O LORD, be merciful to me and raise me up, *
and I shall repay them.
11 By this I know you are pleased with me, *
that my enemy does not triumph over me.
12 In my integrity you hold me fast, *
and shall set me before your face for ever.
13 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, *
from age to age. Amen. Amen.
Psalm 42 (Gregorian Tone 2 monasticus)
2 Like the deer that yearns
for running streams,
so my soul is yearning
for you, my God.
3 My soul is thirsting for God,
the living God;
when can I enter and appear
before the face of God?
4 My tears have become my bread,
by day, by night,
as they say to me ail the day long,
“Where is your God?”
5 These things will I remember
as I pour out my soul:
for I would go to the place
of your wondrous tent,
all the way to the house of God,
amid cries of gladness and thanksgiving,
the throng keeping joyful festival.
6 Why are you cast down, my soul;
why groan within me?
Hope in God; I will praise him yet again,
my saving presence and my God.
7 My soul is cast down within me,
therefore I remember you
from the land of Jordan and Mount Hermon,
from the Hill of Mizar.
8 Deep is calling on deep, .
in the roar of your torrents;
your billows and all your waves
swept over me.
9 By day the LoRD decrees his loving mercy;
by night his song is with me,
a prayer to the God of my life.
10 I will say to God, my rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning
oppressed by the foe?”
11 With a deadly wound in my bones,
my enemies revile me,
saying to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
12 Why are you cast down, my soul;
why groan within me?
Hope in God; I will praise him yet again,
my saving presence and my God.
Psalm 42 (Gregorian Tone 6)
1 Give me justice, O God, and plead my cause
against a nation that is faithless.
From the deceitful and the cunning
rescue me, O God.
2 You, O God, are my strength;
why have you rejected me?
Why do I go mourning,
oppressed by the foe?
3 O send forth your light and your truth;
they will guide me on.
They will bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
4 And I will come to the altar of God,
to God, my joy and gladness.
To you will I give thanks on the harp,
O God, my God.
5 Why are you cast down, my soul;
why groan within me?
Hope in God; I will praise him yet again,
my saving presence and my God.
PRAYER
Eternal God, source of everlasting light,
send forth your truth into our hearts,
and bring us into your presence with joy and gladness
in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen. BCW
THE WORD OF GOD
READING: 2 Samuel 1:1-19, 23-27
After the death of Saul, when David had returned from defeating the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag. On the third day, a man came from Saul’s camp with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. When he came to David, he fell to the ground and did obeisance. David said to him, “Where have you come from?” He said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” David said to him, “How did things go? Tell me!” He answered, “The army fled from the battle, but also many of the army fell and died, and Saul and his son Jonathan also died.” Then David asked the young man who was reporting to him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan died?” The young man reporting to him said, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear, while the chariots and the horsemen drew close to him. When he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. I answered, ‘Here, sir.’ And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ He said to me, ‘Come, stand over me and kill me, for convulsions have seized me, and yet my life still lingers.’ So I stood over him and killed him, for I knew that he could not live after he had fallen. I took the crown that was on his head and the armlet that was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”
Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and all the men who were with him did the same. They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for his son Jonathan and for the army of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had been struck down by the sword. David said to the young man who had reported to him, “Where do you come from?” He answered, “I am the son of a resident alien, an Amalekite.” David said to him, “Were you not afraid to lift your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” Then David called one of the young men and said, “Come here and strike him down.” So he struck him down, and he died. David said to him, “Your blood be on your head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the Lord’s anointed.’ ”
David intoned this lamentation over Saul and his son Jonathan. (He ordered that The Song of the Bow be taught to the people of Judah; it is written in the Book of Jashar.) He said,
“Your glory, O Israel, lies slain upon your high places!
How the mighty have fallen!
Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles;
they were stronger than lions.
O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
who clothed you with crimson, in luxury,
who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.
How the mighty have fallen
in the midst of the battle!
Jonathan lies slain upon your high places.
I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
greatly beloved were you to me;
your love to me was wonderful,
passing the love of women.
How the mighty have fallen,
and the weapons of war perished!”
HYMN: Martin Luther; trans. Gracia Grindal ©
Tune: Aus tiefer Not https://tinyurl.com/v24jjrmz
1 Out of the depths I cry to you;
O Lord, now hear me calling.
Incline your ear to my distress
in spite of my rebelling.
Do not regard my sinful deeds.
Send me the grace my spirit needs;
without it I am nothing.
2 All things you send are full of grace.
You crown our lives with favor.
All our good works are done in vain
without our Lord and Savior.
We praise the God who gives us faith
and saves us from the grip of death;
our lives are in God’s keeping.
3 It is in God that we shall hope,
and not in our own merit.
We rest our fears in God’s good word
and trust the Holy Spirit,
whose promise keeps us strong and sure.
We trust the holy signature
of hope beyond all measure.
4 My soul is waiting for the Lord
as one who longs for morning.
No watcher waits with greater hope
than I for your returning.
I hope as Israel in the Lord,
who sends redemption through the word.
Praise God for endless mercy.
READING: 2 Corinthians 12:11-13
I have been a fool! You forced me to it. Indeed you should have been the ones commending me, for I am not at all inferior to these super-apostles, even though I am nothing. The signs of an apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, signs and wonders and mighty works. How have you been worse off than the other churches, except that I myself did not burden you? Forgive me this wrong!
HYMN: Charles Wesley
Tune: Eton https://tinyurl.com/mwau7w8e
1 Father, whose everlasting love
thy only Son for sinners gave,
whose grace to all did freely move,
and sent him down the world to save;
2 Help us thy mercy to extol,
immense, unfathomed, unconfined;
to praise the Lamb who died for all,
the general Saviour of mankind.
3 Thy undistinguishing regard
was cast on Adam’s fallen race;
for all thou hast in Christ prepared
sufficient, sovereign, saving grace.
4 The world he suffered to redeem;
for all he hath th’atonement made;
for those that will not come to him
the ransom of his life was paid.
5 Arise, O God, maintain thy cause,
the fullness of the nations call;
lift up the standard of thy cross
and all shall own thou diedst for all.
READING: Luke 11:5-13
Jesus said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything out of friendship, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
“So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asked for a fish, would give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asked for an egg, would give a scorpion? If you, then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
CANTICLE Isaiah 2:3-5
(Sarah Montgomery, https://tinyurl.com/y357ttbb)
All Spirit of God, teach us your ways,
that we may walk in the paths of peace.
1 Come, let us go up to the mountain of God,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
2 That God may teach us his ways,
and that we may walk in his paths.
3 For the law shall go out from Zion,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 God shall judge between the nations,
and shall mediate for many peoples.
5 They shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks.
6 Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
7 O people of Jacob, come:
let us walk in the light of the Lord.
All Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
All Spirit of God, teach us your ways,
that we may walk in the paths of peace.
THE PRAYERS BCW
Great and wonderful God,
we praise and thank you for the gift of renewal in Jesus Christ.
Especially we thank you for
opportunities for rest and recreation . . .
the regenerating gifts of the Holy Spirit . . .
activities shared by young and old . . .
fun and laughter . . .
every service that proclaims your love. . . .
You make all things new, O God, and we offer our prayers for the renewal of the
world and the healing of its wounds. Especially we pray for
those who have no leisure . . .
people enslaved by addictions . . .
those who entertain and enlighten . . .
those confronted with temptation . . .
the church in North America. . . .
Setting by Eric Wyse:2
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread;
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.
Provident Father,
with the prayer your Son taught us always on our lips,
we ask, we seek, we knock at your door.
In our every need,
grant us the first and best of all your gifts,
the Spirit who makes us your children.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God forever and ever. Amen. BCW
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.
BCW2018 Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 2018
The traditional language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern language version of Psalm 41 is from the The Book of Common Prayer (1979) and is sung by Ryland Angel. Psalms 42 and 43 are from The Abbey Psalms and Canticles ©2010, 2018 The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. ©2020 as recorded for the Chants and Rants YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chantsandrants
The main scripture readings are from the New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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 © 2026 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.
