Sunday, February 1

The Vespers Office To Be Observed on the Hour or Half Hour Between 5 and 8 p.m

The Call to Prayer

Know this: The Lord himself is God;* he himself has made us, and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

Psalm 100:2

The Request for Presence

For God alone my soul in silence waits;* truly, my hope is in him.

Psalm 62:6

The Greeting

I will thank you, O LORD my God, with all my heart,* and glorify your Name for evermore.

Psalm 86:12

The Hymn

The heavens declare your glory, Lord; In every star your wisdom shines; But when our eyes behold your word, We read your name in fairer lines. The rolling sun, the changing light, And nights and days, your power confess; But the blessed Volume you have given Reveals your justice and your grace. Sun, moon, stars convey your praise Round the whole world, and never stop; So when your truth began its race, It touched and glanced on every land. Nor will your spreading gospel rest Till through the world its course has run; Till Christ shall all the nations bless That see the light, or feel the sun.

Isaac Watts, adapted

The Refrain for the Vespers Lessons

Arise, O God, and rule the earth,* for you shall take all nations for your own.

Psalm 82:8

The Vespers Psalm

The Earth Is the Lord’s

The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,* the world and all who dwell therein. For it is he who founded it upon the seas* and made it firm upon the rivers of the deep. “Who can ascend the hill of the Lord?* and who can stand in his holy place?” “Those who have clean hands and a pure heart,* who have not pledged themselves to falsehood, nor sworn by what is a fraud. They shall receive a blessing from the Lord* and a just reward from the God of their salvation.” Such is the generation of those who seek him,* of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob.

Psalm 24:1–6

The Refrain

Arise, O God, and rule the earth,* for you shall take all nations for your own.

The Gloria

Glory be to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, so it is now and so it shall ever be, world without end. Alleluia. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your Name. May your kingdom come, and 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 yours are the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

The Prayer Appointed for the Week

Almighty and everlasting God, you govern all things both in heaven and on earth: Mercifully hear the supplications of your people, and in our time grant us your peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.†

The Concluding Prayer of the Church

Defend, O Lord, all your servants with your heavenly grace, that we may all continue yours forever, and daily increase in your Holy Spirit more and more, until we come to your everlasting kingdom. Amen.† May the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.