Evening Prayer (Evensong) in Contemporary Language

¶ Evening Prayer
Lent
Wednesday, 26 March 2025
Harriet Monsell, Founder of the Community of St John the Baptist, 1883 [Commemoration]

Preparation

O God, make speed to save us.
AllO Lord, make haste to help us.

Hear our voice, O Lord, according to your faithful love,
Allaccording to your judgement give us life.

One or more of the following is said or sung:

this or another prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
In the darkness of our sin you have shone in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
Open our eyes to acknowledge your presence,
that freed from the misery of sin and shame
we may grow into your likeness from glory to glory.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.

A Song of Entreaty (page 568), the following or another suitable hymn

Lord Jesus, think on me,
and purge away my sin;
from earthborn passions set me free,
and make me pure within.

Lord Jesus, think on me
with many a care opprest;
let me thy loving servant be,
and taste thy promised rest.

Lord Jesus, think on me,
nor let me go astray;
through darkness and perplexity
point thou the heavenly way.

Lord Jesus, think on me,
that, when the flood is past,
I may the eternal brightness see,
and share thy joy at last.

George the Sinner, tr: A W Chatfield
(Tune: SM)

This opening prayer may be said

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Word of God

Psalmody

The appointed psalmody is said.

Psalm 36

Refrain: With you, O God, is the well of life.

1 Sin whispers to the wicked, in the depths of their heart; ♦
there is no fear of God before their eyes.

2 They flatter themselves in their own eyes ♦
that their abominable sin will not be found out.

3 The words of their mouth are unrighteous and full of deceit; ♦
they have ceased to act wisely and to do good.

4 They think out mischief upon their beds
and have set themselves in no good way; ♦
nor do they abhor that which is evil. R

5 Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens ♦
and your faithfulness to the clouds.

6 Your righteousness stands like the strong mountains,
your justice like the great deep; ♦
you, Lord, shall save both man and beast.

7 How precious is your loving mercy, O God! ♦
All mortal flesh shall take refuge
under the shadow of your wings.

8 They shall be satisfied with the abundance of your house; ♦
they shall drink from the river of your delights.

9 For with you is the well of life ♦
and in your light shall we see light. R

10 O continue your loving-kindness to those who know you ♦
and your righteousness to those who are true of heart.

11 Let not the foot of pride come against me, ♦
nor the hand of the ungodly thrust me away.

12 There are they fallen, all who work wickedness. ♦
They are cast down and shall not be able to stand.

Refrain: With you, O God, is the well of life.

O God, the well of life,
make us bright with wisdom,
that we may be lightened with the knowledge of your glory
in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 39

Refrain: Lord, let me know my end and the number of my days.

1 I said, ‘I will keep watch over my ways, ♦
so that I offend not with my tongue.

2 ‘I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, ♦
while the wicked are in my sight.’

3 So I held my tongue and said nothing; ♦
I kept silent but to no avail. R

4 My distress increased, my heart grew hot within me; ♦
while I mused, the fire was kindled
and I spoke out with my tongue:

5 ‘Lord, let me know my end and the number of my days, ♦
that I may know how short my time is.

6 ‘You have made my days but a handsbreadth,
and my lifetime is as nothing in your sight; ♦
truly, even those who stand upright are but a breath.

7 ‘We walk about like a shadow
and in vain we are in turmoil; ♦
we heap up riches and cannot tell who will gather them. R

8 ‘And now, what is my hope? ♦
Truly my hope is even in you.

9 ‘Deliver me from all my transgressions ♦
and do not make me the taunt of the fool.’

10 I fell silent and did not open my mouth, ♦
for surely it was your doing.

11 Take away your plague from me; ♦
I am consumed by the blows of your hand.

12 With rebukes for sin you punish us;
like a moth you consume our beauty; ♦
truly, everyone is but a breath. R

13 Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry; ♦
hold not your peace at my tears.

14 For I am but a stranger with you, ♦
a wayfarer, as all my forebears were.

15 Turn your gaze from me, that I may be glad again, ♦
before I go my way and am no more.

Refrain: Lord, let me know my end and the number of my days.

O Christ, Son of the living God,
help us when we are too cast down to pray,
and grant that we may trust you all our days,
for you are with us in our living and our dying,
Jesus, Lord and God.

Each psalm or group of psalms may end with

AllGlory 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.

If there are two Scripture readings, the first may be read here, or both may be read after the canticle.

Genesis 49.1-32

Then Jacob called his sons, and said: ‘Gather around, that I may tell you what will happen to you in days to come.
Assemble and hear, O sons of Jacob;
   listen to Israel your father.

‘Reuben, you are my firstborn,
   my might and the first fruits of my vigour,
   excelling in rank and excelling in power.
Unstable as water, you shall no longer excel
   because you went up on to your father’s bed;
   then you defiled it—you went up on to my couch!

‘Simeon and Levi are brothers;
   weapons of violence are their swords.
May I never come into their council;
   may I not be joined to their company—
for in their anger they killed men,
   and at their whim they hamstrung oxen.
Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce,
   and their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will divide them in Jacob,
   and scatter them in Israel.

‘Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
   your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
   your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
Judah is a lion’s whelp;
   from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He crouches down, he stretches out like a lion,
   like a lioness—who dares rouse him up?
The sceptre shall not depart from Judah,
   nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;
   and the obedience of the peoples is his.
Binding his foal to the vine
   and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
he washes his garments in wine
   and his robe in the blood of grapes;
his eyes are darker than wine,
   and his teeth whiter than milk.

‘Zebulun shall settle at the shore of the sea;
   he shall be a haven for ships,
   and his border shall be at Sidon.

‘Issachar is a strong donkey,
   lying down between the sheepfolds;
he saw that a resting-place was good,
   and that the land was pleasant;
so he bowed his shoulder to the burden,
   and became a slave at forced labour.

‘Dan shall judge his people
   as one of the tribes of Israel.
Dan shall be a snake by the roadside,
   a viper along the path,
that bites the horse’s heels
   so that its rider falls backwards.

‘I wait for your salvation, O Lord.

‘Gad shall be raided by raiders,
   but he shall raid at their heels.

‘Asher’s food shall be rich,
   and he shall provide royal delicacies.

‘Naphtali is a doe let loose
   that bears lovely fawns.

‘Joseph is a fruitful bough,
   a fruitful bough by a spring;
   his branches run over the wall.
The archers fiercely attacked him;
   they shot at him and pressed him hard.
Yet his bow remained taut,
   and his arms were made agile
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
   by the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,
by the God of your father, who will help you,
   by the Almighty who will bless you
   with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
   blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
The blessings of your father
   are stronger than the blessings of the eternal mountains,
   the bounties of the everlasting hills;
may they be on the head of Joseph,
   on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers.

‘Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
   in the morning devouring the prey,
   and at evening dividing the spoil.’

All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them when he blessed them, blessing each one of them with a suitable blessing.

Then he charged them, saying to them, ‘I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my ancestors—in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave in the field at Machpelah, near Mamre, in the land of Canaan, in the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site. There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried; and there I buried Leah—the field and the cave that is in it were purchased from the Hittites.’

Canticle

A Song of Christ the Servant, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 61 (page 619) or number 67 (page 625), may be said

Refrain:

AllChrist committed no sin,
no guile was found on his lips. Alleluia.

1Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, ♦
that you should follow in his steps.

2He committed no sin, no guile was found on his lips, ♦
when he was reviled, he did not revile in turn.

3When he suffered, he did not threaten, ♦
but he trusted himself to God who judges justly.

4Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, ♦
that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

5By his wounds, you have been healed,
for you were straying like sheep, ♦
but have now returned
to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

1 Peter 2.21b-25

AllGlory 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.

AllChrist committed no sin,
no guile was found on his lips. Alleluia.

Scripture Reading

One or more readings appointed for the day are read.

The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.

Hebrews 6.13-end

When God made a promise to Abraham, because he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, ‘I will surely bless you and multiply you.’ And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise. Human beings, of course, swear by someone greater than themselves, and an oath given as confirmation puts an end to all dispute. In the same way, when God desired to show even more clearly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it by an oath, so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God would prove false, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered, having become a high priest for ever according to the order of Melchizedek.

A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow

Forsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.
AllForsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.
Make haste to help me,
O Lord of my salvation.
AllBe not far from me, O my God.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit.
AllForsake me not, O Lord;
be not far from me, O my God.

from Psalm 38

Gospel Canticle

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary) is normally said,
or A Song of Praise (page 627) may be said

Refrain:

AllCome, let us return to the Lord,
for our God will richly pardon.

1My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour; ♦
he has looked with favour on his lowly servant.

2From this day all generations will call me blessed; ♦
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his name.

3He has mercy on those who fear him, ♦
from generation to generation.

4He has shown strength with his arm ♦
and has scattered the proud in their conceit,

5Casting down the mighty from their thrones ♦
and lifting up the lowly.

6He has filled the hungry with good things ♦
and sent the rich away empty.

7He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, ♦
to remember his promise of mercy,

8The promise made to our ancestors, ♦
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Luke 1.46-55

AllGlory 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.

Refrain:

AllCome, let us return to the Lord,
for our God will richly pardon.

Prayers

Thanksgiving may be made for the day.

Intercessions are offered
¶ for peace
¶ for individuals and their needs

Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 364–365

¶ Those preparing for baptism and confirmation
¶ Those serving through leadership
¶ Those looking for forgiveness
¶ Those misled by the false gods of this present age
¶ All who are hungry

A form of prayer found on page 380 may be used.

The Litany on pages 400-403 may be said instead of the Prayers.

These responses may be used

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer

(or)

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Silence may be kept.

The Collect of the day is said

Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory before he was crucified:
mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Lord’s Prayer is said

Trusting in the compassion of God,
as our Saviour taught us, so we pray

AllOur 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.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.

(or)

Trusting in the compassion of God,
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us

AllOur 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,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

The Conclusion

May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
AllAmen.

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
AllThanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.