WEEK D
O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be forever. Amen.
PSALMODY
Antiphon: Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness;*
make your way straight before me.
Opening – (From Psalm 5)
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;*
early in the morning I make my appeal and watch for you.
Through the greatness of your mercy I will go into your
house;*
I will bow down toward your holy temple in awe of you.
All who take refuge in you will be glad;*
they will sing out their joy for ever.
You will shelter them,*
so that those who love your name may exult in you.
Glory to the Father…
Psalm 145
I will exalt you, O God my King,*
and bless your name for ever and ever.
Every day will I bless you*
and praise your name for ever and ever.
Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;*
there is no end to his greatness.
One generation shall praise your works to another*
and shall declare your power.
I will ponder the glorious splendour of your majesty*
and all your marvellous works.
They shall speak of the might of your wondrous acts,*
and I will tell of your greatness.
They shall publish the remembrance of your great goodness;*
they shall sing of your righteous deeds.
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion,*
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The Lord is loving to everyone*
and his compassion is over all his works.
All your works praise you, O Lord,*
and your faithful servants bless you.
They make known the glory of your kingdom*
and speak of your power;
That the peoples may know of your power*
and the glorious splendour of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;*
your dominion endures throughout all ages.
The Lord is faithful in all his words*
and merciful in all his deeds.
The Lord upholds all those who fall;*
he lifts up those who are bowed down.
The eyes of all wait upon you, O Lord,*
and you give them their food in due season.
You open wide your hand*
and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways*
and loving in all his works.
The Lord is near to those who call upon him,*
to all who call upon him faithfully.
He fulfils the desire of those who fear him,*
he hears their cry and helps them.
The Lord preserves all those who love him,*
but he destroys all the wicked.
My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord;*
let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
Glory be to the Father . . .
Almighty God, give us grace to know you more and more, that knowing we may love and loving we may praise, that the whole world may hear your name and worship you, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Conclusion (from Isaiah 66)
Rejoice with Jerusalem and exult in her,*
all you who love her.
Share her joy with all your heart,*
all you who mourn over her.
Then you may suck and be fed from her breasts,*
delighting in her plentiful milk.
For thus says the Lord, I will send peace flowing over her like
a river,*
and the wealth of nations like a stream in flood;
you shall be carried in her arms,*
and rocked upon her knees.
As a mother comforts her child,*
so will I myself comfort you, and you shall find strength
in Jerusalem.
This you shall see and be glad at heart;*
your limbs shall be as the fresh grass in spring.*
Then I myself will gather all nations;*
and they shall come and behold my glory.
Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness;*
make your way straight before me.
READINGS
Job 4.1; 5.6-27
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:
For misery does not come from the earth,
nor does trouble sprout from the ground;
but human beings are born to trouble
just as sparks fly upward.
‘As for me, I would seek God,
and to God I would commit my cause.
He does great things and unsearchable,
marvellous things without number.
He gives rain on the earth
and sends waters on the fields;
he sets on high those who are lowly,
and those who mourn are lifted to safety.
He frustrates the devices of the crafty,
so that their hands achieve no success.
He takes the wise in their own craftiness;
and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.
They meet with darkness in the daytime,
and grope at noonday as in the night.
But he saves the needy from the sword of their mouth,
from the hand of the mighty.
So the poor have hope,
and injustice shuts its mouth.
‘How happy is the one whom God reproves;
therefore do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.
For he wounds, but he binds up;
he strikes, but his hands heal.
He will deliver you from six troubles;
in seven no harm shall touch you.
In famine he will redeem you from death,
and in war from the power of the sword.
You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue,
and shall not fear destruction when it comes.
At destruction and famine you shall laugh,
and shall not fear the wild animals of the earth.
For you shall be in league with the stones of the field,
and the wild animals shall be at peace with you.
You shall know that your tent is safe,
you shall inspect your fold and miss nothing.
You shall know that your descendants will be many,
and your offspring like the grass of the earth.
You shall come to your grave in ripe old age,
as a shock of grain comes up to the threshing-floor in its season.
See, we have searched this out; it is true.
Hear, and know it for yourself.’
Acts of the Apostles 28.17-30
Three days later he called together the local leaders of the Jews. When they had assembled, he said to them, ‘Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our ancestors, yet I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. When they had examined me, the Romans wanted to release me, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to the emperor—even though I had no charge to bring against my nation. For this reason therefore I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is for the sake of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.’ They replied, ‘We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken anything evil about you. But we would like to hear from you what you think, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.’
After they had fixed a day to meet him, they came to him at his lodgings in great numbers. From morning until evening he explained the matter to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the prophets. Some were convinced by what he had said, while others refused to believe. So they disagreed with each other; and as they were leaving, Paul made one further statement: ‘The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your ancestors through the prophet Isaiah,
“Go to this people and say,
You will indeed listen, but never understand,
and you will indeed look, but never perceive.
For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and their ears are hard of hearing,
and they have shut their eyes;
so that they might not look with their eyes,
and listen with their ears,
and understand with their heart and turn—
and I would heal them.”
Let it be known to you then that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.’
He lived there for two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all who came to him,
Silence
Response (Ps. 63:4)
V. The eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him.
R. The eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him.
V. On those who wait upon his love.
R. On those who fear him.
V. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
R. The eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him.
BENEDICTUS
Benedictus Antiphon: God has raised up for us* a mighty saviour.
Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,*
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,*
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old*
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our forebears,*
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of
death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory be to the Father.
Benedictus Antiphon: God has raised up for us* a mighty saviour.
PRAYERS
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
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.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen.
Collects
Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you. May we find peace in your service, and in the world to come, see you face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
God most holy, we give you thanks for bringing us out of the shadow of night into the light of morning; and we ask you for the joy of spending this day in your service, so that when evening comes, we may once more give you thanks, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!
The Lord bless us and preserve us from all evil;
and bring us to life eternal. Amen.
