Scripture Readings and Evening Intercessions

O God make speed to save us . O Lord, make haste to help us . There shall come forth a shoot from the stock of Jesse , and a branch shall grow out of his roots , and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him the spirit of wisdom and understanding , the spirit of counsel and might , the spirit of knowledge and 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 . The wolf shall dwell with the lamb , and the leopard shall lie down with the kid , the calf, the lion and the fatling together , with a little child to lead them . They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain . For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea . Glory 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 . That this evening may be holy, good, and peaceful, let us pray with one heart and mind mind . 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 . Amen . Psalm one hundred and thirty eight I may be thankful with my own heart , before the cause realiz ing I will tangle ungraceful name because your God s , for you have glorified your name and your name In the day that I called you not to make me strengthening my soul All the kings of the earth shall be for they have had the word s of your nose . They shall see all the wings of the Lord . That great is our glory My full of growth dear The Lord can 't draw You will stretch with your heart is the world my head s Your right hand saving Lord shall make your strongest on it your loving kind ness , O Lord, endures forever , for save not the work of your hearts . Glory to thy father and to thy soul O to the spirit The first reading is from the second book of Chronicles, beginning at chapter 20, verse 1 . After this, the Moabites and Ammonites, and with them some of the Munites, came against Jehoshaphat for battle. Messengers came and told Je hoshaphat, A great multitude is coming against you from Edom, from beyond the sea. Already they are at hazard on Tamar. That is Engedi . Jehoshaphat was afraid . He set himself to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord. From all the towns of Judah they came to seek the Lord . Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, and said, O Lord, God of our ancestors, are you not God in heaven? Do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations ? In your hand are power and might, so that no one is able to withstand you . Did you not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham . They have lived in it, and in it have built you a sanctuary for your name, saying, If disaster comes upon us, a sword We will stand before this house and before you, for your name is in this house, and cry to you in our distress, and you will hear and save . See now, the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Sea, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy, they reward us by coming to drive us out. O our God, will you not execute judgment upon them? For we are powerless against this great multitude that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you . Meanwhile, all Judah stood before the Lord with their little ones, their wives, and their children. Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jehaziel, son of Zechariah, son of Beniah, son of Jael, son of Mataniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the middle of the assembly. He said, Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat , thus says the Lord to you, do not fear or be dismayed at this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God's. Tomorrow go down against them. They will come up by the ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley, before the wilderness of Jer ul . This battle is not for you to fight. Take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem . Do not fear or be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them , and the Lord will be with you . Then Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord , worshiping the Lord . And the Levites of the Kohathites and the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice. They rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Teka . And as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said , Listen to me, O Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in the Lord your God , and you will be established. Believe his prophets . When he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the Lord and praise him in holy splendor as they went before the army, saying , Give thanks to the Lord, for his steadfast love endures forever. As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moab and Mount Siir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed . For the Ammonites and Moab attacked the inhabitants of Mount Si ah, destroying them utterly. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Sea, they all help to destroy one another . All nations shall come and worship you, O Christ , and share in the feast of your kingdom . Great and wonderful are your deeds . Lord God the Almighty , just and true are your ways , O ruler of the nations , who shall not revere and praise your name, O Lord . For you alone are holy . All nations shall come and worship in your presence . For your just dealings have been revealed . To the one who sits on the throne and to the Lamb . Be blessing and honour and glory and might. For ever and ever. Amen . All nations shall come and worship you, O Christ , and share in the feast of your kingdom. The second reading is from the letter of Paul to the Romans, beginning at chapter 2, verse 17 . But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast of your religion And if you are sure that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth, you then, that teach others, will you not teach yourself while you preach against stealing do you steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery ? You that abhor idols, do you rob temples? You that boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? For, as it is written, the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you . Circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision . So if those who are uncircumcis ed keep the requirements of the law, will not their uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision ? Then those who are physically uncircumcised, but keep the law, will condemn you that have the written code, and circumcision, but break the law. For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true circumcision something external and physical? Rather a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart. It is spiritual and not liter al. Such a person receives praise not from others but from God . Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name, you are mine . Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name , you are mine . When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. When you walk through fire, you shall not be burned. I have called you by name, you are mine . Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit . Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name. You are mine . You are I sig d my soul broke with the greatness of the law . My spirit rejoices in God, my favor he has looked with famous thrrom this day which I can still call me bless ed . The almighty must have great sword until he has seen all those free from gener ation to j am I sent me my the sub tle to him by his prom ise of mud Love Christ mas to our fall to our song . I would We pray to the Lord. In faith we pray . We pray to you, our God , that the rest of this day may be holy, peaceful , and full of your presence . In faith we pray . We pray to you, our God , that the work we have done and the people we have met today may bring us closer to you . In faith we pray . We pray to you, our God , that we may hear and respond to your call to peace and justice . In faith we pray we pray to you, our God , that you will sustain the faith and hope of those who are lonely, oppressed and anxio us . In faith we pray . We pray to you, our God , that you will strengthen us in your service and fill our hearts with longing for your kingdom . In faith we pray . We pray to you, our God . Let us commend ourselves and all for whom we pray to the mercy and protection of God . O Lord, from whom all good things come, grant to us your humble serv ants that by your holy inspiration we may think those things that are good and by your merciful guiding may perform the same through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God now and for ever . Amen . As our Saviour taught us, so we pray . 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. 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 . The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all evermore . Amen . Let us bless the Lord . Thanks be to God .