Sunday 8 December 2019
2nd Sunday of Advent
Vespers (Evening Prayer)
Introduction (without Invitatory)
If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, use the version with the Invitatory Psalm instead.
O God, come to our aid.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.
________
Hymn
On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry
Announces that the Lord is nigh;
Come then and hearken, for he brings
Glad tidings from the King of kings.
Then cleansed be every Christian breast,
And furnished for so great a guest!
Yea, let us each his heart prepare
For Christ to come and enter there.
For thou art our salvation, Lord,
Our refuge and our great reward;
Without thy grace our souls must fade,
And wither like a flower decayed.
Stretch forth thine hand, to heal our sore,
And make us rise to fall no more;
Once more upon thy people shine,
And fill the world with love divine.
All praise, eternal Son, to thee,
Whose Advent sets thy people free,
Whom, with the Father, we adore,
And Holy Ghost, for evermore.
________
Psalm 109 (110)
The Messiah, king and priest
“He must be king so that he may put all his enemies under his feet” (1 Cor 15:25).
Behold, the Lord will come on the clouds of heaven with great strength. Alleluia.
The Lórd’s revelátion to my Máster: †
‘Sít on my ríght: *
your fóes I will pút beneath your féet.’
The Lórd will wíeld from Síon †
your scéptre of pówer: *
rúle in the mídst of all your fóes.
A prínce from the dáy of your bírth †
on the hóly móuntains; *
from the wómb before the dáwn I begót you.
The Lórd has sworn an óath he will not chánge. †
‘You are a príest for éver, *
a príest like Melchízedek of óld.’
The Máster stánding at your ríght hand *
will shatter kíngs in the dáy of his wráth.
He shall drínk from the stréam by the wáyside *
and thérefore he shall líft up his héad.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
Behold, the Lord will come on the clouds of heaven with great strength. Alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
Father, we ask you to give us victory and peace. In Jesus Christ, our Lord and King, we are already seated at your right hand. We look forward to praise you in the fellowship of all your saints in our heavenly homeland.
Or:
Almighty God, bring the kingdom of Christ, your anointed one, to its fullness. May the perfect offering of your Son, eternal priest of the new Jerusalem, be offered in every place to your name and make all nations a holy people for you.
________
Psalm 113B (115)
Praise of the true God
“Turn away from idols and worship the living and true God” (1 Th 1:9).
The Lord will come and will not disappoint us. Wait for him if he seems to delay, for he will surely come, alleluia.
Not to ús, Lórd, not to ús, *
but to yóur náme give the glóry
for the sáke of your lóve and your trúth, *
lest the héathen say: ‘Whére is their Gód?’
But our Gód is ín the héavens; *
he dóes whatéver he wílls.
Their ídols are sílver and góld, *
the wórk of húman hánds.
They have móuths but they cánnot spéak; *
they have éyes but they cánnot sée;
they have éars but they cánnot héar; *
they have nóstrils but they cánnot sméll.
With their hánds they cánnot féel; †
with their féet they cánnot wálk. *
(No sóund cómes from their thróats.)
Their mákers will cóme to be líke them *
and so will áll who trúst in thém.
Sons of Ísrael, trúst in the Lórd; *
hé is their hélp and their shíeld.
Sons of Áaron, trúst in the Lórd; *
hé is their hélp and their shíeld.
You who féar him, trúst in the Lórd; *
hé is their hélp and their shíeld.
He remémbers us, and hé will bléss us; †
he will bléss the sóns of Ísrael. *
(He will bléss the sóns of Áaron.)
The Lord will bléss thóse who féar him, *
the líttle no léss than the gréat:
to yóu may the Lórd grant íncrease, *
to yóu and áll your chíldren.
May yóu be bléssed by the Lórd, *
the máker of héaven and éarth.
The héavens belóng to the Lórd *
but the éarth he has gíven to mén.
The déad shall not práise the Lórd, *
nor thóse who go dówn into the sílence.
But wé who líve bless the Lórd *
nów and for éver. Amén.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
The Lord will come and will not disappoint us. Wait for him if he seems to delay, for he will surely come, alleluia.
Psalm-prayer
Father, creator and ruler of heaven and earth, you made man in your likeness to subdue the earth and master it, and to recognize the work of your hands in created beauty. Grant that your children, thus surrounded on all sides by signs of your presence, may live continually in Christ, praising you through him and with him.
________
Canticle
(Apocalypse 19)
The wedding of the Lamb
The Lord is our judge, the Lord is our king: he will come and make us whole.
Alleluia.
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, *
his judgements are true and just.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
Praise our God, all you his servants, *
you who fear him, small and great.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
The Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns, *
let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory.
Alleluia.
Alleluia.
The marriage of the Lamb has come, *
and his bride has made herself ready.
Alleluia.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
The Lord is our judge, the Lord is our king: he will come and make us whole.
________
Short Reading
Philippians 4:4-5
I want you to be happy, always happy in the Lord; I repeat, what I want is your happiness. Let your tolerance be evident to everyone: the Lord is very near.
________
Short Responsory
Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
And grant us your salvation.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
– Show us, Lord, your steadfast love.
________
Canticle
Magnificat
My soul rejoices in the Lord
‘I baptize you in water for repentance,’ said John. ‘The one who follows me is more powerful than I am, and he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’ (Year A)
Or: Blessed are you, Mary, because you had faith: the Lord’s promise to you will be fulfilled, alleluia.
My soul glórifies the Lórd, *
my spirit rejóices in Gód, my Sáviour.
He looks on his sérvant in her lówliness; *
henceforth all áges will cáll me bléssed.
The Almíghty works márvels for me. *
Hóly his náme!
His mércy is from age to áge, *
on thóse who féar him.
He púts forth his árm in stréngth *
and scátters the proud-héarted.
He casts the míghty from their thrónes *
and ráises the lówly.
He fills the stárving with good thíngs, *
sends the rích away émpty.
He protects Ísrael, his sérvant, *
remémbering his mércy,
the mercy prómised to our fáthers, *
to Ábraham and his sóns for éver.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.
‘I baptize you in water for repentance,’ said John. ‘The one who follows me is more powerful than I am, and he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’ (Year A)
Or: Blessed are you, Mary, because you had faith: the Lord’s promise to you will be fulfilled, alleluia.
________
Prayers and intercessions
The voice of John crying in the wilderness is echoed tonight in the voice of the Church:
– Make our hearts ready, O Lord!
For your coming to us in grace this Advent:
– Make our hearts ready, O Lord!
For the work we must do in creating a more just world:
– Make our hearts ready, O Lord!
For the understanding we shall need this week for our families and friends:
– Make our hearts ready, O Lord!
For our death, for our judgement, for eternal life with you:
– Make our hearts ready, O Lord!
________
Our 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.
________
Almighty and merciful God,
let neither our daily work nor the cares of this life
prevent us from hastening to meet your Son.
Enlighten us with your wisdom
and lead us into his company.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
________
The Lord bless us, and keep us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
Copyright © 1996-2019 Universalis Publishing Limited: see www.universalis.com. Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible are published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. Text of the Psalms: Copyright © 1963, The Grail (England). Used with permission of A.P. Watt Ltd. All rights reserved.