Evening Prayer (Evensong) in Contemporary Language

¶ Evening Prayer
from All Saints’ Day until
the day before the First Sunday of Advent
Thursday, 21 November 2024

Preparation

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

Your faithful servants bless you.
AllThey make known the glory of your kingdom. Alleluia.

One or more of the following is said or sung:

this or another prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
our light and our salvation,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
Now, as darkness is falling,
wash away our transgressions,
cleanse us by your refining fire
and make us temples of your Holy Spirit.
By the light of Christ,
dispel the darkness of our hearts
and make us ready to enter your kingdom,
where songs of praise for ever sound.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.

A Song of Tobit (page 596), the following or another suitable hymn

Give me the wings of faith to rise
within the veil, and see
the saints above, how great their joys,
how bright their glories be.

Once they were mourning here below,
and wet their couch with tears;
they wrestled hard, as we do now,
with sins and doubts and fears.

I ask them whence their victory came:
they, with united breath,
ascribe their conquest to the Lamb,
their triumph to his death.

They marked the footsteps that he trod,
his zeal inspired their breast,
and, following their incarnate God,
possess the promised rest.

Our glorious Leader claims our praise
for his own pattern given;
while the long cloud of witnesses
show the same path to heaven.

Isaac Watts
(Tune: CM)

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 74

Refrain: Arise, O God, maintain your own cause.

1 O God, why have you utterly disowned us? ♦
Why does your anger burn
against the sheep of your pasture?

2 Remember your congregation that you purchased of old, ♦
the tribe you redeemed for your own possession,
and Mount Zion where you dwelt.

3 Hasten your steps towards the endless ruins, ♦
where the enemy has laid waste all your sanctuary.

4 Your adversaries roared in the place of your worship; ♦
they set up their banners as tokens of victory.

5 Like men brandishing axes on high in a thicket of trees, ♦
all her carved work they smashed down with hatchet and hammer.

6 They set fire to your holy place; ♦
they defiled the dwelling place of your name
and razed it to the ground.

7 They said in their heart, ‘Let us make havoc of them altogether,’ ♦
and they burned down all the sanctuaries of God in the land.

8 There are no signs to see, not one prophet left, ♦
not one among us who knows how long.

9 How long, O God, will the adversary scoff? ♦
Shall the enemy blaspheme your name for ever?

10 Why have you withheld your hand ♦
and hidden your right hand in your bosom? R

11 Yet God is my king from of old, ♦
who did deeds of salvation in the midst of the earth.

12 It was you that divided the sea by your might ♦
and shattered the heads of the dragons on the waters;

13 You alone crushed the heads of Leviathan ♦
and gave him to the beasts of the desert for food.

14 You cleft the rock for fountain and flood; ♦
you dried up ever-flowing rivers.

15 Yours is the day, yours also the night; ♦
you established the moon and the sun.

16 You set all the bounds of the earth; ♦
you fashioned both summer and winter. R

17 Remember now, Lord, how the enemy scoffed, ♦
how a foolish people despised your name.

18 Do not give to wild beasts the soul of your turtle dove; ♦
forget not the lives of your poor for ever.

19 Look upon your creation,
for the earth is full of darkness, ♦
full of the haunts of violence.

20 Let not the oppressed turn away ashamed, ♦
but let the poor and needy praise your name.

21 Arise, O God, maintain your own cause; ♦
remember how fools revile you all the day long.

22 Forget not the clamour of your adversaries, ♦
the tumult of your enemies that ascends continually.

Refrain: Arise, O God, maintain your own cause.

Redeeming God,
renew your broken people
with your Holy Spirit,
that they may walk your narrow way,
and greet your coming dawn
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 76

Refrain: The Lord has made fast his throne for judgement.

1 In Judah God is known; ♦
his name is great in Israel.

2 At Salem is his tabernacle, ♦
and his dwelling place in Zion.

3 There broke he the flashing arrows of the bow, ♦
the shield, the sword and the weapons of war. R

4 In the light of splendour you appeared, ♦
glorious from the eternal mountains.

5 The boastful were plundered; they have slept their sleep; ♦
none of the warriors can lift their hand.

6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, ♦
both horse and chariot fell stunned. R

7 Terrible are you in majesty: ♦
who can stand before your face when you are angry?

8 You caused your judgement to be heard from heaven; ♦
the earth trembled and was still,

9 When God arose to judgement, ♦
to save all the meek upon earth. R

10 You crushed the wrath of the peoples ♦
and bridled the wrathful remnant.

11 Make a vow to the Lord your God and keep it; ♦
let all who are round about him bring gifts
to him that is worthy to be feared.

12 He breaks down the spirit of princes ♦
and strikes terror in the kings of the earth.

Refrain: The Lord has made fast his throne for judgement.

Majestic and gracious God,
more awesome than the agents of war,
more powerful than the wrath of nations,
restrain the violence of the peoples
and draw the despised of the earth
into the joyful life of your kingdom,
where you live and reign for ever and ever.

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.

Isaiah 10.33 – 11.9

Look, the Sovereign, the Lord of hosts,
   will lop the boughs with terrifying power;
the tallest trees will be cut down,
   and the lofty will be brought low.
He will hack down the thickets of the forest with an axe,
   and Lebanon with its majestic trees will fall.

A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse,
   and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
   the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
   the spirit of counsel and might,
   the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
   or decide by what his ears hear;
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
   and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
   and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
   and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

The wolf shall live with the lamb,
   the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
   and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze,
   their young shall lie down together;
   and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
   and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
They will not hurt or destroy
   on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
   as the waters cover the sea.

Canticle

A Song of God’s Assembled, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 70 (page 628) or number 73 (page 631), may be said

Refrain:

AllWe have come before the throne of God
to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. Alleluia.

1We have come before God’s holy mountain, ♦
to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God.

2We have come before countless angels making festival, ♦
before the assembly of the firstborn citizens of heaven.

3We have come before God, who is judge of all, ♦
before the spirits of the just made perfect.

4We have come before Jesus, ♦
the mediator of the new covenant.

5We are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken: ♦
so let us give thanks and offer to God acceptable worship,

6Full of reverence and awe; ♦
for our God is a consuming fire.

Hebrews 12.22-24a, 28, 29

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.

AllWe have come before the throne of God
to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. Alleluia.

Scripture Reading

One or more readings appointed for the day are read.

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

Matthew 8.14-22

When Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever; he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. That evening they brought to him many who were possessed by demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick. This was to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, ‘He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.’

Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. A scribe then approached and said, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ Another of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.’

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

Lord, you will guide me with your counsel
and afterwards receive me with glory.
AllLord, you will guide me with your counsel
and afterwards receive me with glory.
For I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.
AllAnd afterwards receive me with glory.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit.
AllLord, you will guide me with your counsel
and afterwards receive me with glory.

from Psalm 73

Gospel Canticle

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary) is normally said,
or the Nunc dimittis (The Song of the Simeon) (page 613) may be said

Refrain:

AllThe righteous will shine like the sun
in the kingdom of their Father.

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:

AllThe righteous will shine like the sun
in the kingdom of their Father.

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

¶ The saints on earth, that they may live as citizens of heaven
¶ All people, that they may hear and believe the word of God
¶ All who fear the winter months
¶ All sovereigns and political leaders, that they may imitate the righteous rule of Christ
¶ All who grieve or wait with the dying

A form of prayer found on page 384 may be used.

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

Heavenly Father,
whose blessed Son was revealed
      to destroy the works of the devil
and to make us the children of God and heirs of eternal life:
grant that we, having this hope,
may purify ourselves even as he is pure;
that when he shall appear in power and great glory
we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom;
where he 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

Uniting our prayers with the whole company of heaven,
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)

Uniting our prayers with the whole company of heaven,
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 Christ, who has opened the kingdom of heaven,
bring us to reign with him in glory.
AllAmen.

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