None (Afternoon Prayer)
O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
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.
If you are celebrating this Hour then you must use the psalms of the day, because no complementary psalms are available for this hour.
PSALMS OF THE DAY
If you love me, follow my commandments, says the Lord.
See my distress, and rescue me,
since I have not forgotten your law.
Give judgement in my case and redeem me;
give me life, as you have promised.
The wicked are far from salvation:
they have not sought out your judgements.
Your acts of kindness are many:
Lord, give me life as you have decreed.
How many pursue me and trouble me!
But I have not abandoned your decrees.
I have seen liars and they disgust me,
since they have ignored your promises.
Lord, see how I love your commandments!
In your loving kindness, give me life.
Truth lies behind all your words:
justice makes your judgements last for ever.
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.
If you love me, follow my commandments, says the Lord.
Psalm 127 (128)
Peaceful life in the Lord |
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May the Lord bless you: may you be at peace all the days of your life.
Blessed are all who fear the Lord
and walk in his ways.
The food you have worked for, you will eat:
God’s blessing will bring you good things.
Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
on the side of your house.
Your children will be like olive shoots,
seated round your table.
See, this is how the man is blessed
who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion:
may you see the wealth of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
May you see your children’s children.
Peace be on Israel.
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.
May the Lord bless you: may you be at peace all the days of your life.
Psalm 128 (129)
The renewed faith of an afflicted people |
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The Lord has defeated your enemies for you.
Let Israel say: ‘They have attacked me
again and again from my youth.
Again and again from my youth –
but they could never defeat me.
My back has been scored by ploughmen
ploughing long furrows.
But the Lord, the Righteous One,
has broken the necks of the wicked.’
May all who hate Zion
be thrown back in utter confusion.
Like the grass that grows on the roof
that withers before it flowers.
He who harvests it is empty-handed;
his arms are empty of its sheaves.
Those who go past do not say
‘The blessing of the Lord be upon you,
we bless you in the name of the Lord.’
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 has defeated your enemies for you.
| Short reading | Hebrews 12:1-2 © |
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We should throw off everything that hinders us, especially the sin that clings so easily, and keep running steadily in the race we have started. Let us not lose sight of Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection: for the sake of the joy which was still in the future, he endured the cross, disregarding the shamefulness of it, and from now on has taken his place at the right of God’s throne.
My heart hopes in the Lord.
– My soul relies on his word.
Lord, as we pray to you give us these gifts –
to follow the example of patience that your only-begotten Son has shown us,
and to remain strong when we suffer adversity.
Through Christ our Lord,
A M E N
