Evening

O God, make speed to save us.

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.

The appointed psalmody is said.

Psalm 94

¹O LORD, God of vengeance, O God of vengeance, shine forth!

²Rise up, O judge of the earth; repay to the proud what they deserve!

³O LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked exult?

⁴They pour out their arrogant words; all the evildoers boast.

⁵They crush your people, O LORD, and afflict your heritage.

⁶They kill the widow and the sojourner, and murder the fatherless;

⁷and they say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob does not perceive.”

⁸Understand, O dullest of the people! Fools, when will you be wise?

⁹He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see?

¹⁰He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge —

¹¹the LORD — knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath.

¹²Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, and whom you teach out of your law,

¹³to give him rest from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked.

¹⁴For the LORD will not forsake his people; he will not abandon his heritage;

¹⁵for justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it.

¹⁶Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who stands up for me against evildoers?

¹⁷If the LORD had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.

¹⁸When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up.

¹⁹When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

²⁰Can wicked rulers be allied with you, those who frame injustice by statute?

²¹They band together against the life of the righteous and condemn the innocent to death.

²²But the LORD has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge.

²³He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness; the LORD our God will wipe them out.

Each psalm or group of psalms may end with

Refrain:

Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, whose judgements are true and just.

Praise our God, all you his servants, all who fear him, both small and great.

The Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns: let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory.

For the marriage of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready.

Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding banquet of the Lamb.

Revelation 19.1b,2a,5b,6b,7,9b

One or more readings appointed for the day are read.

1 Maccabees 4.1–25

¹Then took Gorgias five thousand footmen, and a thousand of the best horsemen, and removed out of the camp by night;

²To the end he might rush in upon the camp of the Jews, and smite them suddenly. And the men of the fortress were his guides.

³Now when Judas heard thereof he himself removed, and the valiant men with him, that he might smite the king’s army which was at Emmaus,

⁴While as yet the forces were dispersed from the camp.

⁵In the mean season came Gorgias by night into the camp of Judas: and when he found no man there, he sought them in the mountains: for said he, These fellows flee from us

⁶But as soon as it was day, Judas shewed himself in the plain with three thousand men, who nevertheless had neither armour nor swords to their minds.

⁷And they saw the camp of the heathen, that it was strong and well harnessed, and compassed round about with horsemen; and these were expert of war.

⁸Then said Judas to the men that were with him, Fear ye not their multitude, neither be ye afraid of their assault.

⁹Remember how our fathers were delivered in the Red sea, when Pharaoh pursued them with an army.

¹⁰Now therefore let us cry unto heaven, if peradventure the Lord will have mercy upon us, and remember the covenant of our fathers, and destroy this host before our face this day:

¹¹That so all the heathen may know that there is one who delivereth and saveth Israel.

¹²Then the strangers lifted up their eyes, and saw them coming over against them.

¹³Wherefore they went out of the camp to battle; but they that were with Judas sounded their trumpets.

¹⁴So they joined battle, and the heathen being discomfited fled into the plain.

¹⁵Howbeit all the hindmost of them were slain with the sword: for they pursued them unto Gazera, and unto the plains of Idumea, and Azotus, and Jamnia, so that there were slain of them upon a three thousand men.

¹⁶This done, Judas returned again with his host from pursuing them,

¹⁷And said to the people, Be not greedy of the spoil inasmuch as there is a battle before us,

¹⁸And Gorgias and his host are here by us in the mountain: but stand ye now against our enemies, and overcome them, and after this ye may boldly take the spoils.

¹⁹As Judas was yet speaking these words, there appeared a part of them looking out of the mountain:

²⁰Who when they perceived that the Jews had put their host to flight and were burning the tents; for the smoke that was seen declared what was done:

²¹When therefore they perceived these things, they were sore afraid, and seeing also the host of Judas in the plain ready to fight,

²²They fled every one into the land of strangers.

²³Then Judas returned to spoil the tents, where they got much gold, and silver, and blue silk, and purple of the sea, and great riches.

²⁴After this they went home, and sung a song of thanksgiving, and praised the Lord in heaven: because it is good, because his mercy endureth forever.

²⁵Thus Israel had a great deliverance that day.

Mark 15.42–end

⁴²And when evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath,

⁴³Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

⁴⁴Pilate was surprised to hear that he should have already died. And summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he was already dead.

⁴⁵And when he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the corpse to Joseph.

⁴⁶And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.

⁴⁷Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.

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

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

The Lord is my light and my salvation; the Lord is the strength of my life.

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.

Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

from Psalm 27 and John 1

Refrain:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Luke 1.46-55

Intercessions are offered

These responses may be used

Lord, in your mercy

(or)

Lord, hear us.

Silence may be kept.

The Collect of the day (here) or the following is said

Collect of the Day

Thursday after the 18th Sunday after Trinity

Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us your gift of faith that, forsaking what lies behind and reaching out to that which is before, we may run the way of your commandments and win the crown of everlasting joy; 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.

The Lord’s Prayer is said (here)

As our Saviour taught us, so we pray

Let us bless the Lord.